Thriller: British Film Review 1 - A Clockwork Orange

Directed by Stanley Kubrick in 1971, A Clockwork Orange is a darkly satirical science fiction film adaptation of Anthony Burgess’s 1962 novel of the same name. Set in future Britain, the film follows charismatic delinquent Alex Delarge, who is jailed and volunteers for an experimental aversion therapy developed by the government in an effort to solve society’s crime problem.

A Clockwork Orange was critically well-received and was nominated for several awards, including the “Academy Award For Best Picture”. However, Kubrick himself removed the film from the UK’s public viewing, due to it sparking copycat crimes; although this is also debatable, as a popular theory spoken about in the film documentary of Kubrick’s life suggest that he withdrew the film due to police advice, following threats against him and his family.

Following the titles, the film sharply cuts to a close-up shot of Alex Delarge staring straight at the camera in full droog attire, as Beethoven’s symphony begins to increase in volume. The camera slowly tracks out to reveal Alex and his droogs sitting in a milk bar, as he begins his monologue, revealing their plans of ultraviolence for the evening.

The next scene involves a drunken homeless man loudly singing to himself in a tunnel/passageway. The lighting here is very dark, enabling us to see the shadows of Alex and his droogs slowly approaching the old man. The voiceover from Alex in which he reveals his distaste for drunken, singing, homeless men sets the scene for the following events in which they grievously harm the defenceless man.

The music used in the following scene is used in quite an ironic fashion. The shot is set inside an abandoned theatre, where another gang comprising of “Billy Joe and his droogs”, are about to rape a defenceless woman. Classical music plays over the top of the scene, much like how it would have actually been played back when the theatre was in use, which is ironic as the events about to unfold are extremely grim, whereas the music is rather upbeat. The camera then cuts to a shot of Alex and his droogs making their entrance from where the audience would once have been seated. There are a lot of quick cuts in this scene where the two gangs are fighting, orchestrated by the classical music playing over the scene, almost choreographing the fight. The camera shots in this scene range in length from close to medium shots, with heavy use of a handheld camera, to make the audience feel they are within the action. The lighting here, not unlike the lighting in the last scene, is very dim.