Clockwork Orange

This movie is infamous for its violence. Even if you aren't bothered by the sight of people getting shot in an action movie or stabbed in a horror movie, you might not be able to stomach the violence in this movie. In one scene, the droogs surround and beat up an old drunkard. I'm guessing it's because A Clockwork Orange puts a human face on Alex's victims, whereas the victims in a typical horror movie don't seem like real people - they seem more like caricatures of human beings rather than real people, so we don't care what happens to them. Even though the drunkard isn't killed, it doesn't change the way the viewer feels about the scene, because of the way the camera captures the brutality of the beating. There's also a violent scene that isn't unsettling - it's intentionally hilarious. I refer to the scene when the two gangs have a brawl that looks so unreal it looks like a professional wrestling match - the background music makes this scene even more enjoyable. So it's obvious that Kubrick tried to be silly rather than realisitc with regard to some aspects of the movie - like the way Alex runs into his former victims, one after another. I never read Anthony Burgess' book, so I am unsure if there's any silliness in his story.

This movie is also infamous for scenes of rape. We may consider murder to be a worse crime than rape, but ask anyone and they'll say they would prefer to see a character in a movie be murdered rather than raped. In one nasty scene, a woman is about to be gang-raped, but she manages to escape before it happens. But viewers aren't let off the hook in the scene at the writer's house. The close-up of the woman's face is more than enough to leave viewers shaken. In addition to showing the anguish of the victim, this movie shows that the victims of rape are scarred for life. That becomes apparent in a later scene when the writer describes the fate of his wife. At face value, these graphic scenes will seem exploitive. But they aren't. Kubrick should be commended for not allowing this movie to sink to the level of exploitation.

One of the most horrifying scenes is when the naked woman appears onstage before Alex. The sight of Alex on his knees, in a state of incredible agony while the audience applauds, is terrifying. It's as if mankind is applauding the complete destruction of the human spirit. It's like they are endorsing the means to turn us all into mindless robots, too afraid to think or feel anything, and spending every moment of our waking lives in dread of triggering the next bout of incredible physical pain. The thought of living under a totalitarian government that conditions everyone to behave the same way is terrifying - this method of conditioning certainly wouldn't be limited to murderers and rapists. I don't know if it's possible to condition people the way Alex was conditioned, but the thought that such a technique might be possible is very unsettling.

I like how this movie makes us hate Alex and pity his victims, and then it makes us pity Alex himself. Alex is such an interesting and captivating character that we are fascinated by his every act and every thought, even though he's a detestable character. Since the movie completely revolves around Alex, no one would bother watching the movie if he was boring or annoying. You'll probably find Alex's jargon annoying at first (like "malchick", "viddy", "eggy-waygs", and so on) but you'll get used to it. Interestingly, we enjoy seeing Alex suffer UNTIL he returns home after his release from prison. And we pity him for the rest of the movie - UNTIL the movie's final scene. When Alex runs into his former victims, they each exact a measure of revenge on him. Even though we can understand why his victims are hurting him, we can't help but feel that they have no right to hurt him. It almost makes you appreciate our justice system, even though we always scream for harsher punishments. And did anyone notice how long McDowell's head was held underwater? You'd think Kubrick wanted to drown him.

What's the point of A Clockwork Orange? By now you should be thinking about how to balance the rights of criminals with society's right to protect itself from criminals. In order to guarantee the security of the vast majority, is it acceptable to force a tiny minority to live their lives devoid of joy, even if they become suicidal? No one wants a convicted murderer or child molester in their neighbourhood - but what's the proper way to deal with that situation? We may never know.

"A Clockwork Orange" is an ingenious comparison of two theories of punishment- retributivism and utilitarianism. Debate has raged over the proper role of a criminal justice system. Is the goal to punish the criminal according to the old eye for an eye standard (retributivism) or to reform the criminal into a useful, law abiding citizen (utilitarianism)? At the outset, many people dismiss utilitarian values as a lot of liberal silliness: soft on crime. A more important question is whether we should reform criminals whether they desire to be reformed or not for the good of society. One of the more interesting aspects of this film is that is shows utilitarianism can be a far more brutal method than retributivism, contrary to popular thought.

Here we have the debate crystallized as if the proponents of both, Kant and Bentham, were debating the merits before our very eyes through the characters on screen. Alex is unquestionably rotten to the core; he maims and rapes helpless victims for laughs. The first hour of the film is dedicated to underscoring this point. When Alex is apprehended by the authorities, he is dealt with in the old fashioned Kantian way- punishment.

Alex then volunteers for a special treatment that will "cure" him, in exchange for freedom. The cure is a form of conditioning that causes Alex to become terribly ill whenever any inclination towards sex or violence surfaces- he now has a reflexive aversion toward evil, and "ceases to be a being capable of moral choice". The final act of the film deals with the consequences of being "cured" in such a way.

By now you probably get the idea- go see this film (but not as a "date"). To further entice you, it's one of the most visually exciting movies ever made, with vibrant images that will burn themselves into your mind. If you've never seen it on DVD, the transfer is great, and you will see things you've missed before. And as a final bonus, look for the guy who plays Darth Vader as a bodyguard.