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“A Clockwork Orange” (1971) is worthy of preservation for providing a surreal, yet thought-provoking, commentary on moral choice and crime. Based on the book by Anthony Burgess, this dystopian satire was directed by Stanley Kubrick and stars Malcolm McDowell in unquestionably his most famous role as Alex DeLarge.<!--more-->

The story takes place in the not too distant future in London. Alex is a teenage hoodlum who goes around town with his four droogs, or friends, where they do “a bit of the old ultra-violence.” They fight other gangs, beat up homeless men, break into other people’s homes and commit rape to helpless women. After a break-in gone wrong, Alex is arrested and sentenced to fourteen years in prison. After two years, he is selected to be the test subject for an experimental technique that is supposed to “reform” criminals. Alex is injected with a serum, and forced to watch violent films where he slowly becomes more sick watching it to the point where every time he tries to do harm to people, nausea prevents him. Alex is then released back in society as a well-behaved citizen; though not by choice. But things eventually do not go to plan when he is left vulnerable to his victims, bent on revenge.

Back in the 1970s, restrictions for sexuality and violence in film were being lifted. Instead, we were introduced to the MPAA ratings systems to show which audience is more suitable to a certain movie. Throughout this decade, Hollywood would break ground by giving us such violent films such as “Taxi Driver,” “Bonnie and Clyde,” “Dirty Harry,” and much more. “Clockwork Orange” was considered a very violent and very sexual movie, though the violence was more stylized than bloody. But it has extremely sexual overtones including nudity, rape, and a lot of phallic symbols. When it was first released, it received an X rating. Kubrick himself had to cut a few seconds to receive an R rating. A similar case would occur when Kubrick would cut a few seconds from his NC-17 rated final film, “Eyes Wide Shut,” to receive an R rating.

Many of Kubrick’s trademarks are present in this film. Most of the background score consists of classical music, though in this case it’s mostly synthesized to give it a much more futuristic quality. Like most of Kubrick’s films, it doves deeper into the dehumanization of us all which it presented when Alex’s free will is taken away from him, making him into the titular “clockwork orange.” The book, as well as the movie, would introduce a new language by the author known as Nadsat. It is a combination of English slang, Russian words, and cockney rhymes. The film uses this new language, though it is not used very often as the director thought it would confuse audiences. The cinematography of the film also creates great point-of-view shots like when someone is on the floor, or in a corner, or even falling out of a window. Like I said, most of Kubrick’s films would push the envelope and the result would be either being something you love or hate.

David Lynch’s “Blue Velvet” is another film that would fall into the same category as “Clockwork Orange” in terms of surrealism, violence, and misogyny. In the film, Isabella Rossellini’s character, Dorothy Vallens, is a singer who is helpless against Dennis Hopper’s character, Frank Booth, who is a psychopath that abuses her constantly. Both of these films portray a world of crime in which sociopaths like Booth and Alex cause harm to others. “It’s a strange world we live in,” says one character in the film. “Blue Velvet” is also in one way a coming of age story, when compared to the book version of “Clockwork Orange.” In the film, Kyle MacLachlan’s character, Jeffrey Beaumont, finds himself in the underworld of his seemingly pleasant hometown after discovering a human ear in a field. In the book of “Clockwork Orange,” it is backwards. The story ends by having Alex getting tired of doing violence and wanting to start a new life as a family man, unlike the movie where it ended precisely at the twentieth chapter when it is implied that Alex was cured and went back to doing violent acts. Anthony Burgess, the author, had written the book with twenty-one chapters since it is said to be the age of maturity. In my opinion, I do believe a young person could be grown into maturity after being rebellious, but I do not believe a person could mature after being mentally psychotic. Whatever the case, both of these works address the issues of crime and sociopaths really well.

When the film was first released in 1971, it was a critical success. However, it was controversial upon its release. Audiences were shocked by the violence in the film, and were reacting in disgust to it. On top of that, people in England began imitating the crimes of Alex and his droogs. Kubrick and his family were receiving death threats for this outrage. He certainly never intended this to happen. In an effort to escape harm, he withdrew the film from British cinemas. Back then, it was incredibly rare for a director to have the kind of power that Kubrick had over all of his films. And the film would not see the light of day in England until after Kubrick’s death.

Today, the film is considered a classic, though it is still considered controversial. Right now, most audiences are starting to get the message of the film and the dark humor. Like most of Kubrick’s films, people would not understand them, up until a few years pass when people would began to appreciate them. Not only that time heals wounds, but it would also change many opinions.

In my personal opinion, this movie was a very thrilling ride. I enjoyed the surreal atmosphere of London, and the dark humor that is presented in the form of characters such as Alex’s perverted probation officer, Mr. Deltoid, and the over-the-top Chief Officer Barnes. I especially love the themes of loss of choice and totalitarianism. I read and watch a lot of dystopian works of fiction; being fascinated by how they serve as a cautionary tale of not letting government have control over you, even if you are a deranged psychopath. The messages and strange images are what make this one of my favorite movies of all time.

Future generations should be aware of this film’s existence because of how it pushed the envelope in terms of violence and sex in film. But that should not overshadow the themes of moral choice, as people were at first shocked at the violence and did not get the point. Like I said before, this movie has an important message that seems to grow truer as time goes on, as did other similar Orwellian works. This also provided a good example of Kubrick’s technique in films; it has his distinguishing marks like most of other directors’ works. With a lot of issues at hand, I am sure that “A Clockwork Orange” would still continue to shock and fascinate people for years to come.
<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Bibliography</strong></p>
Burgess, Anthony. <em>A Clockwork Orange</em>.  1961.
<blockquote>New York: 1986. Print.</blockquote>
<em>Great Bolshy Yarblockos, Making “A Clockwork Orange.” </em>
<blockquote>Prod. Warner Bros., 2007. DVD.</blockquote>
Dirks, Tim. “Film History of the 1970s.” <em>Filmsite</em>. 2011.
<blockquote>21 November 2011.</blockquote>
<em>Blue Velvet</em>. Prod. 1986. MGM, 2002.
<blockquote>DVD.</blockquote>