The Character and Role of Alex

A strong and compelling theme within the film is dominance; dominance within the characters, as well as the interior spaces throughout the film. The design of the space has the aesthetic sensibilities of mayhem.

Alex is the personification of dominance, like a warrior king, he takes what he wants in the spoils of victory, from the bodies of conquered women to the riches of modern nations and the status that goes along with it.

In the opening scene of the film, as the camera tracks backwards, the widening perspective shows with bizarre imagery what the theme of the first fifteen minutes is going to be. The tables throughout the Korova milk bar are female figures with their legs spread inviting “use” and the hair colors alternate in orange and purple, which are royal colors, associated with dominance in following scenes. The milk bar is overseen by two white clad bouncers that represent the enforced peace that Alex and his gang of ‘droogs’ are about to ignore.

The scene in the milk bar after the ‘surprise visit’ emphasizes the parallel forms of dominance. The music is the Purcell elegy normally dedicated to royalty and Alex’s bearing, language and superior taste establish him as a king. Alex seems to have the soul of a king but the imagination of an artist, for he is a creative killer, molester, menace.

The design of his room can quickly show the character of Alex. The purple rug with the orange and gold squares of his bed spread show royal colors again. These colors are offset by the deep blue of the bed sheets creating a balanced contrast in the space. His bedroom is an ironic Eden where violence is innocently natural and where a love for color, proportions and music is equally natural. Upon entering the room Alex she...

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...nting’s black and white colour scheme matches Alex’s white pants and black boots and the spherical light behind him corresponds to the round shape of the woman’s body. Her eyes are small black spots that form a symmetrical pattern with her nipples, and fingernails as if to show she can receive pleasure but can not understand or create it.

Alex’s artistic sensibility is highlighted when his room becomes that of Joe, the lodger. Alex’s perfectly made bed, unruffled even when he slept in it, now messily unmade. Its deep blue sheets are now grayish white. And the unusual orange and gold quilt is now a blue linen bedspread. The stereo system has devolved into a small radio, barbells and a school binder has replaced the records and books, magazine clippings of soccer stars have replaced the paintings and a tack floral pattern has ousted Beethoven from the shade.