Stanley Kubrick's Controversial Film, A Clockwork Orange

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Stanley Kubrick’s controversial film, A Clockwork Orange, profoundly deplored the idea of establishment of government. The film denounced government authority in relation to an individual’s free will and human nature. Psychologically or socially based, it is in question whether a system of government interrupts an individual’s free will or not. Alex Burgess, the protagonist of this film is a corrupted and violent individual who acts against his community in opposition to government control.
In the first 15 minutes of A Clockwork Orange, a series of sexual and violent crimes take place, shocking the audience. Kubrick portrayed violence through tactics that were primarily meant to disturb the audience, rather than just temporarily frighten them. …show more content…

The film’s conception of visual style is distinctive and gaudy, yet at the same time it seems to exude an aesthetically pleasing cinematic appearance. The narration and particular point of view of Alex is merely subjective and presented in a distanced manner. We develop a so to speak sympathetic relationship with Alex through this narration and Alex is well aware of this. Alex refers to himself in third-person in many instances throughout the film. He is an individual aware of his self-consciousness. Alex’s narrative can be interpreted as ironic. The voice over is a crucial element in creating the film’s overall tone and interpretation of Alex. Something to note is that Alex’s commentary is substantially different from what we see presented on screen. The commentary is pervasive and direct. Alex’s subjective view of the world is distorted. The distorted perspective we experience present the sensory overload and heightened experience Alex undergoes due to his constant use of drugs. The viewer’s relationship with Alex is complicated by the immoral nature of him compared to our already established sympathetic relationship. The intensified subjective presentation is created through the visual distortion and extensive use of point of view

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