A Clockwork Orange

Well, it will be hard to cover this one in a single post. I'm sure I will remember things later and keep adding to it. A Clockwork Orange is a frightening look into the future by the master of film, Stanley Kubrick. While 2001 was an optimistic look about the intelligence of man and where we can go, ACO is the opposite side of man. The depravity and inhumane way we treat each other. How brutal and uncaring man can become. Most importantly: what lengths society will go to to stop a monster. I will address this part of the film at the end of my post, as I believe that that issue IS the entire film.

Of course Kubrick's attention to detail is apparent here as with all of his movies. Every shot is done so to make the audience dislike Alex. He is a villain of the highest magnitude. The cinematography is excellent and complements the weird futuristic story very nicely. Also, the music has an odd, chilling, and ominous tone throughout. Even the language that is spoken is a hybrid mix of English, Russian slang, and another dialect I didn't recognize. Kubrick obviously took great time in construction this....world. It really is a world. Every detail is taken care of so that you KNOW this is a different place. Same planet, different world. With every beating, rape, and drunken brawl we see the humanity drain from Alex. He is hollow. A shell. A monster living among us humans, if we can even be called that anymore.

So, now to my interpretation of the film - of THE issue. Alex isn't human by most peoples standards. So what do we do with him? He cannot be allowed to roam the streets hunting for prey anymore. So he is arrested after a particularly heinous act of violence. Now what? Let him rot in prison? Kubrick had enough of a vision to know that prison would not be an option at some point in the future. It simply does not work. Finally, execution makes society the bad guy so that's out of the question. What do we then do? A Clockwork Orange suggests that we will start to "re-condition" prisoners. Not rehabilitate, that has also been throw out because of the high rearrest rate. To "re-condition" someone means to expose them to "ultra-violence" while injecting them with a serum that reacts to make the "patience" queasy, nauseous and debilitated. Much like Pavlov and his experiment with dogs (look it up if you don't know what aversive conditioning is). So now Alex is "cured" right? The main point of this movie is do we want him on the streets? This is a human that is being to forced to comply and fit into society. True it is for the good of the whole, but do we want people to have this kind of power? What if things like jaywalking are punishable in this way? Things would get out of hand quickly. Ponder the implications of each of Alex's situations throughout the film.

A Clockwork Orange is a piece of art. Not a movie or film. It is not for the weak-of-heart or the squeamish. Malcolm McDowell is brilliant as Alex and the masterpiece is worth seeing even if just for his performance. You have been warned but I urge everyone to see this and sit and think for an hour or two. Strike up a discussion.

IMDB here.