A Clockwork Orange

 Hello my lovelies,

How is everyone doing today? Got another film from my ever growing list to share with you again. I've been told by multiple people to watch this, and well now I have and I'm not sure what to think of it. I liked it but its quite weird.

Directed by Stanley Kubrick, A Clockwork Orange is a dystopian crime film that was released in 1971. It's difficult to try to sum up this film and explain it properly, but its basically about a teenager, Alex, who enjoys Beethoven and rape, amongst the other forms of trouble he causes which he refers to as 'ultra violence'. Things take a wrong turn for him when he gets arrested and becomes a guinea pig for an experiment that could change prisoners views on violence forever.

Alex DeLarge (Malcolm McDowell) and his group of friends which he refers to as his 'droogs' are constantly out every night seeing what trouble they can cause next. They're a very strange group of friends and Alex actually creeps me out a little bit. During the film Alex narrates what's happening in slang formed from Slavic English and Cockney rhyming slang. At times I found it quite strange and didn't know what he was going on about, but I think that's just Alex in general. He is very much the type of person that likes to be in the spotlight, and likes to be the leader.

From the start of the film I could tell it was going to be an odd one. It opens to them sat in a milk bar, yes I said milk, milk mixed with drugs. Surrounded by mannequins that seemed to have names, and some of them even formed pieces of furniture. Very odd.

Leading up to Alex becoming part of an experimental treatment that are some things he does that I didn't like at all, but at the same time its not comfortable to watch him get strapped to a chair and forced to watch something that is making him ill and causing him pain, even if that is the doctors and prison guards idea of 'curing' him of his violent thoughts towards specific people such as women. They eventually decide that Alex is cured and now a reformed criminal, and allow him to be released from prison. Well lets just say he was probably safer inside, as would everyone else be.

On the outside Alex is found and recognised by people he had once caused harm to, resulting in them trying to get their own back, including his friends nearly killing him. When he thinks he's safe he's locked in a room and forced to listen to Beethoven which now causes him so much pain due to it being used during his treatment. In agonising pain he decides the only way to escape that feeling is by jumping out the window hoping it would kill him, however he is just knocked unconscious from the fall and later wakes up in hospital with several broken bones.

The treatment Alex was put through was meant to last forever and not allow him to have the violent thoughts again, however something about the fall must have reversed what they did to him. Much to Alex's delight he is no longer 'cured', and enjoys his violent thoughts once again.

A Clockwork Orange is quite a long film and once again I'm still undecided about whether I like it or not, although at times I was wanting to help Alex especially during that torturous treatment. I think at some point I might have to re-watch it at some point to properly decide if I like it.

I think its worth a watch just because its so different from most films now, and the language used is quite interesting to listen to as well, so if you fancy something different then look it up.

Until next time, thanks for reading :) x