A Clockwork Orange (1971)

What can you say about a movie that was made back in 1971, which depicts a near foreseeable future (2010?), yet is timeless, never appearing dated?    I call it a visionary masterpiece.    Stanley Kubrick is my favorite director, and his 1971 dystopian psychological crime film, “A Clockwork Orange”, is my personal favorite of all his movies.     It is a spellbinding view of a scary and very plausible future that succeeds in giving empathy to a despicable character, which in turn serves as a warning about the danger of government control of its population.  

In the movie, the near future of Britain is a dangerous and scary place to live.   Violence is rampant and the youth are left unsupervised, while being left to their own devices, prowling the streets in small savage groups.   One such group is the Droogs, which are led by the charismatic and sadistic Alex DeLarge (Malcolm McDowell in a star-turning, powerhouse performance).   Alex looks to be about 17 or 18 years old and his Droogs include three other similarly aged oafs.  Together they enjoy their evenings by beating up the homeless, robbing, raping, and even murdering.   When Alex gets arrested and is sentenced to a long time in prison, he gets selected as a Guinee Pig in an experimental scientific reform program that is meant to make him a good, law-abiding citizen.  Through drugs and forced viewings of extremely violent films of rape and pillage, the experiment makes him physically allergic to violence as well as sex.   He is then released back into the world to fend for himself.   The irony is that while he is now allergic to even thinking about sex or committing evil deeds, he is still the same person he always was.  A side-effect to the treatment is that he also became allergic to the music of his favorite and beloved composer, Ludvik Von Beethoven.  

Kubrick’s visualization of the foreseeable future is stunning, and it is not because of special effects.    The cinematography and art direction are at another level with this movie, and its effects are felt immediately as the film opens. The opening sucks us in to this strange but somewhat familiar world with a startling close-up of Alex that slowly pans out, revealing all the Droogs sitting in their favorite and weird looking club to the accompaniment of a startling electronic version of the 17th century music score for the Funeral of Queen Mary.  The close-up begins with Alex and his eyes (Leone style), staring cruelly right at the camera, then goes backwards and out to reveal first the rest of the Droogs and then the strange white sexual statues that is the décor of this club that is unlike any existing club on earth (even today).   Together with the futuristic version of the funeral march, the scene succeeded in placing me ill at ease with the world I was about to see, and magnificently sets the stage for the ensuing story. 

And what a story it is!  Kubrick does not let up for a moment with the cruel and unsavory Alex.   The futuristic and myopic setting allowed him to create his unique brand of art or stylized violence.   There is an initial beating of an old homeless man that is filled with dread, employing tilted Dutch angle shots, and large leering ominous shadows.   When the camera aims at Alex’s face, it is tilted to the side, which serves to increase the menacing nature of his character.   There is another scene where Alex takes down two of the Droogs who are questioning his authority that is filmed in a slow-motion style that gives a balletic feel to the violence.    The attack on the cat lady (one of Alex’s victims) is filmed using a hand-held wide angled camera and from every angle imaginable, which serves to emphasize how causing pain to others is so enjoyable to Alex.   Alex is a dangerous psychotic, whose charisma and intelligence add depth to his monstrous personality.

Accompanying these outstanding visuals is a soundtrack composed of pieces of traditional Classical music, and electronic music composed by the musician Wendy Carlos.   Many of the electronic pieces are modern interpretations of the classics.  For example, the aforementioned “score for the Funeral of Queen Mary” that opens the movie, as well as the “March from a Clockwork Orange”, which is Carlos’ interpretation of Beethoven’s ninth symphony, fourth movement.   Rarely does a film and score mix so spectacularly well together as it does in “A Clockwork Orange”.    In one scene, Alex takes two young girls to his room for group sex, and the sex is filmed in fast motion, to the accompaniment of Rossini’s William Tell Overture.   The speed of this piece accompanied by the fast motion filming adds an element of violence to the act that takes out any semblance of warmth.   That was exactly Kubrick’s point in his visualization of the myopic society that the movie is set in.    Beethoven’s ninth symphony is Alex’s favorite piece of music and is an integral part of the later brainwashing section of the movie.     Its significance is very important.   For example, when Alex relaxes to the music, it causes him to fantasize about murder and assault.   Later, the music inadvertently becomes part of his reconditioning, and he becomes deathly allergic to the music of Beethoven.   I am sure that many lovers of Beethoven’s music were disgusted by the use and symbolization of his music within the structure of the movie.   I thought it was perfect, as it showed an interpretation of beautiful music as being abused, first by a monster created by society, and then by the ruling government.   

A discussion on “A Clockwork Orange” cannot be made without a mention of the performance of Malcolm McDowell as Alex.   You would be hard pressed to find a better and more sinister performance.  Stanley Kubrick was known for developing a close-up shot of a face that has the head tilted downward while the eyes peer upward, known as, “The Kubrick Stare”, which signifies that the character in question is either angry or really deranged.     McDowell gives the greatest example of the stare, which makes his completely insane Alex very believable.      It is one of filmdom’s greatest performances.   The Joker in the last few Batman movies owes a great debt to McDowell’s Alex.   

Throughout the movie, Kubrick makes a point of emphasizing the insanity of politics and he treats both right and left with the same disdain.    The ruling government is shown willing to make puppets of its people for power, and the left-wing opposition are seen as being no better, as they have no qualms in using people to create a false reality.   By using a truly despicable character as its victim, this is that rare film that hammers its social commentary by showing us the perspective of a person who does not deserve our sympathy, while at the same time being abused by symbols of abusive power. 

The entire movie is narrated in noir style by Alex, giving an eerie film-noir tone to its structure.   Film-noir usually forces us to empathize with its flawed but heroic characters.    Here there is nothing heroic about Alex, yet I found myself rooting for him at the end.    The movie succeeds in hammering home its social message of warning.

With “A Clockwork Orange”, Kubrick has succeeded in creating a look and feel that still feels as relevant for a foreseeable future today as it did back in 1971.   While the look and style in the film used elements of the rock and glitter fashion of the early 70’s, it still retains its alienness today that still feels like something that could easily occur in today’s near future.  In fact, today seems even more relevant.  Other than the use of a funky looking record player and a tiny cassette tape, nothing feels dated in the movie.  

  This is one of those rare works of art that gets better with each viewing, while never losing any of its power.   It is an intellectual, visual masterpiece, and one of the greatest movies ever made.