The Long Kiss Goodnight also ran with the idea of the bad guys being used by the "good" guys for certain purposes. To a lot of adults at the time it seemed like society was on the road to hell in a handbasket (of course, older people say that about teenagers all the time, don't they?). A Clockwork Orange, novel by Anthony Burgess, published in 1962. A Clockwork Orange is a book and movie with many different levels. So ACO is best understood as an exaggeration of the time that Anthony Burgess lived in. The head of a gang of toughs, in an insensitive futuristic society, is conditioned to become physically ill at sex and violence during a prison sentence. If you're reading this comment your question wasn't stupid. Also, some context: in the 1950's and 1960's especially, there was this attitude that you could use all this marvelous new medical science to cure every problem that had ever plagued humanity, and among some people, there was a big push to use psychiatry to cure various social ills. I understand how it was ahead of its time, the acting was great, and that the cinematography was really awesome for being 1971, but the actual story didn't bring on the "thought provoking" that some people are talking about. Yeah, I think it's been said but it's about free will so it touches on some pretty big biblical themes. T here’s no doubt about it: Stanley Kubrick is one of the greatest filmmaking pioneers of all time. But just taking the movie as it was (not as a prophecy), it was brilliantly shot, and acted. I mean that was some of the basis and backstory, but far from the point. I finally watched it, and I just thought it was dull. On the surface you could watch it and think it's just a violent screwed up film but when you think about it it's saying if we could take free will away and force everyone to do the right thing, then they would lose their humanity. Otherwise, we are "clockwork". The title is a play on trying to turn something organic (like Alex or an orange) into something mechanical (like a clock or a person with no free will), It’s about the power of free will and choosing morality freely is a part of maturity. This is very much a reality. It was set in a future that we wish to not exist - imagine how much scarier that was to an audience less desensitized to these issues back in 1971. Brilliant. As such, his filmography isn’t as expansive as those of his contemporaries. It's not that the movies didn't meet my expectations, it's just that I didn't really think they were good at all. Can someone explain the plot like I'm 5? /u/cherryphosphate nailed the point. Ultimately it's about how forcing someone to do good is no moral thing because it denies their choice. What I took away from it was that it was a Christian allegory. We use cookies on our websites for a number of purposes, including analytics and performance, functionality and advertising. It's Kubrick's ability to bring this kind of depth (as outlined in the above analysis) to a film whose ideas seem so apparent on first viewing that keeps me watching it. We also are now pretty sure that you cannot cure sociopathy, but people at the time certainly tried. My first introduction to Kubrick was through 2001, and now I think I've seen his two greatest films. Many people considered it more humane, and there was the possibility that it could have turned out to be more effective. Alex notes that he is cured. But no, Alex is the worst, so you understand where the evil government is coming from. But for what Kubrick … Many viewers actually thought it depicted on-screen rape, in the same way many people swear that they saw the head-inna-box in Seven. I thought that was the case considering his last line in … Maybe it would just get more and more intense over time. On that level it is an extreme example to those that do not feel self-empowered. At least to me it is, others may interpret things differently. Hell, it even shocked me at times. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, News & Discussion about Major Motion Pictures, Press J to jump to the feed. ^ The term "A Clockwork Orange" refers to a human who is mechanically responsive, as is the character of Alex in the story, after his series of trials and "modifications". Teen slang that's confusing to adults-->something that's pretty much a different language altogether. You have to have a certain trust in science and an idealistic perspective on humanity as a whole, but a lot of the people who believed this tended to want to enforce conformity. The Droogs, as A Clockwork Orange fans will know, were a group of adolescent boys who belonged to a … The controversy raised in that movie is still feeding academic papers to this date. Then I watched it a second time, this time watching the extras and learning of its past, then the movie grew on me greatly. “If he can only perform good or only perform evil, then he is a clockwork orange—meaning that he has the appearance of an organism lovely with colour and juice but is in fact only a clockwork toy to be wound up by God or the Devil.” ― Anthony Burgess, A Clockwork Orange. The taking away of free will is bad, etc etc. I think Kubrick’s version is more matured and tries to be reali… One of your favorite films.. Jesus christ you must be one of those guys who hasn't seen very many films and see's a movie that is quirky and retarded as Clockwork orange is and then brags about it to people who have never heard of the film. Thanks to the rewind feature and internet access, the movie is pretty easy to understand. It gives the film this sort of character that is irreparable. I can definitely see why audiences were shocked back when it came out. Government officials find him and undo his conditioning in the hopes that he will agree to help them counter the bad publicity that his story is causing them. Alex is basically the worst person, but it's still wrong to take away his free will and turn him into a "clockwork" being. I got really bored about 3/4 of the way through, and struggled to finish it. This being one of my favorite films, it's hard to admit that the first time I saw it I hated it. The husband has become an opponent of the current government and he and his friends plan to use Alex as an example of the government's failures. Here, we answer all your questions about Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, including what happened in the ending. The most obvious level is the theme of violence and 'ultra-violence'. As Anthony Burgess writes in the introduction (entitled "A Clockwork Orange Resucked," hee hee) the title refers to a person who "has the appearance of an organism lovely with colour and juice but is in fact only a clockwork toy to be wound up by God or the Devil or (since this is increasingly replacing both) the Almighty State. ^ Taken from the 1973 Caedmon audio LP, Anthony Burgess Reads A Clockwork Orange, and present only in Andrew Biswell's Restored Text edition of A Clockwork Orange. ACW was extremely controversial, and still is difficult for some to watch. Eventually, however, the husband recognizes him and locks him in a bedroom while playing classical music, which induces violent illness from the Ludovico conditioning. However, God still allows us our free will. I liked the movie better. Gangs of teenage hoodlums-->gangs of teenagers going around having, like, raping competitions. In “A thousand words before breakfast” interview Burgess admitted, that however he despised teenage gangs, he strongly opposed to the proposals of using Pavlovian techniques to deal with violent citizens. Many movies now are clones of clones, just money makers that give short lasting enjoyment at best. Yeah it's pretty great. “If he can only perform good or only perform evil, then he is a clockwork orange—meaning that he has the appearance of an organism lovely with colour and juice but is in fact only a clockwork toy to be wound up by God or the Devil.” Fuller explained that he was legally prohibited from calling the characters Droogs. Rarely do movies do this for me, to name a few that do: fight club, star wars, pans labyrinth, labyrinth, never ending story, memento, princess bride, (and many would say Avatar, though I don't like that movie) Where it's not only the story, it's how it's told. I have the ACO book, it's 'okay' and Very difficult to read. (Was the prison chaplain in the movie? The book ends with Alex realising that youth has to make its own mistakes and find its own way (like a clockwork toy bumping off things until it finds a path). Its one of the most visually impressive and stylistic movies ever made, That's the strong point.Just watch the opening sequence http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HI-mDTdeKR8 -Right from the color of the screen, the typography, the meticulous setup and cinematography, the long reverse shot revealing so much of the story just unveiling visual details that make you think "I don't know what kind of reality I have been suckered into but this universe is deep in meaning. This has happened to me with a couple movies, and A Clockwork Orange is one of them. I always appreciated how ACO goes there. Add to that you have a government that chooses to use 'fad' type cures for everything to save money and look impressive, and police brutality. There, he is offered the opportunity to be released early if he agrees to participate in the experimental Ludovico technqiue, which he accepts. I felt no sympathy for him. But in 1962, when the book was written, we didn't know that would happen. One of my favorite scenes in the film. Perhaps I should learn to be more sympathetic? it's a greater evil to force people to be good rather than to allow evil to exist. A Clockwork Orange is yet another film that I took much too long to see. Stanley Kubrick was, in many ways, a perfectionist. He decided to adapt Stephen King’s best selling novel, The Shining. There's also the fact that the author of the book eventually came to despise it, and actively tried to get the book and the movie banned, which it was in some places until only about a decade ago. Kubrick decided to direct a comparatively crowd appealing film, maybe as a result of the financially poor performance of ‘Barry Lyndon’, which by many revered critics and filmmakers is considered to be his best film. That actually helps me understand why I wasn't that impressed. From God's perspective (in the Christian understanding, anyway), all of humanity is just like Alex, we are all totally depraved. First, let’s define zoom lens. Alternatively, the point is: torture is wrong, no matter what. In the 1950's and 1960's, there was also this sort of surge of teen rebellion (which had always existed) and teen culture (which had not). This question probably has a really simple answer but I re watched a clockwork orange last night for the 5th time and every time I watch it I’m left a little confused with the ending. I'd heard for so long how the movie is a classic, how good it is.