Review of Clockwork Orange, A

Video

A Clockwork Orange is part of the Stanley Kubrick Collection recently released on DVD and is presented in the standard 1.33:1 aspect ratio. This is not to say there is a full widescreen version available, just that Kubrick shot many of his films in this full screen standard. It is split into 26 chapters.

For a 28 year old film (it was made in 1971) the video quality is excellent. There were no noticeable imperfections in the vision, and the images were pin sharp. Colours were vibrant and there was no noticeable grain. Contrast is good.

Audio

Due to the age of the film, there is only a Dolby Digital Mono soundtrack.

The musical score is comical in parts (often on the most violent scenes) and has many Beethoven pieces throughout the movie. The music generally is very early 70s with much early synthesiser pieces.

Features

The DVD includes a theatrical trailer, and production notes.

Conclusion

This is a controversial film. It is a common misconception that A Clockwork Orange has been banned in the UK. This is not the case. In fact it was Kubrick himself who purposely restricted the distribution of the film in the UK. Now after his death, interest in this film has increased.

Although one can see the controversy that would have arisen in 1971 when the film was originally released, it is mild by today’s standards. The story of Alex, a troubled adolescent who lists rape, extreme violence and Beethoven as his interests, continues with a supposed new ‘cure’ for his behaviour. It is an interesting and thought provoking notion.

The DVD itself boasts a very high picture quality for the age of the film, and is not totally devoid of any extras.