A Clockwork Orange
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A Clockwork Orange (1971)
Probably the most rapey sci-fi I'll review at any point. Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange is a divisive movie and a highly controversial one, but it’s one I absolutely love. It’s pure cinema, just at its nastiest. I’ve always been a fan of controversial movies, and it’s rare to get one from a director who is a master of cinema.
A Clockwork Orange follows the story of Alex (Malcolm McDowell) and his droogs, as they set about committing acts of Ultra-Violence, having a bit of the old in-out (whether the woman wants it or not) drinking milk, and listening to Beethoven. After Alex’s cruel leadership is questioned by the others in the group, they set him up, leading to Alex being imprisoned. There, he takes part in an experimental behaviour program to stop him being such a fucking rapist asshole, and make him a better person. But, can you just program people to be better? Especially one like Alex?
Clockwork Orange has so much going on under the hood, as well as the more savage surface aspects of the rape and violence. While the first part of the movie concentrates on us seeing what a scumbag Alex is in some of the most memorably cruel scenes in cinema history, the second has plenty of intriguing sci-fi elements to it. The idea of programming someone’s behaviour to stop their criminal sensibilities is fascinating, and something I feel like I want to write a whole article about one day.
Having seen Alex, steal, assault, rape, and murder, while showing not only endless enjoyment in his actions, but also zero legitimate remorse, he is in fact the ideal candidate for the experimental program. But on the flip side, does he deserve to become a better person? Shouldn’t he be locked away for life for his crimes? But what good is that when we can make him better? But should he or anyone else be ‘made’ better? Isn’t brainwashing or implanting behavioural markers taking away free-will and therefore what makes us human?
There’s so many questions about the procedure, and the film does a remarkable job of answering most of them. I love the whole third act of the movie as Alex is placed back into society as a changed man, but what has he really learnt when the program is tricking his brain rather than educating him. It’s incredible stuff, and handled brilliantly.
It’s easy to view A Clockwork Orange as a mindless exploitation flick with the abundance of nudity and violence. it’s cruel sadistic scenes and unlikable characters. No real effort is made to show Alex in any redeemable quality, or even give reasons for his brutality. His parents seem ok, his teacher is a dick but wants him to be better. Alex is just a wayward kid, a product of this futuristic world where the trash is left on Earth. But A Clockwork Orange isn’t an exploitation flick (although I'd still love it if it was)
Instead, Clockwork Orange is a brutal examination of human behaviour through the lens of one of the best film makers to ever live, taken from a fantastic book. There’s so much craft in the movie. Beautiful shots and music. Slow building dread. Outrageous costumes and language, put together by someone who knows how to make perfect movies. It’s rare that such controversial subject matter is broached by someone of Kubrick’s class, and it’s something missing within modern cinema.
A Clockwork Orange most definitely won’t be for everyone, but it is a masterpiece.
