Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee, Michael Bates, Warren Clarke, John Clive ...( see more  see more... ) , Adrienne Corri

Based on Anthony Burgess's disturbing novel about England in the totalitarian future, Malcolm McDowell portrays Alex, a Beethoven-loving, head-bashing punk who leads his gang of droogs on ultra-violen...( read more  read more... )t assaults--until he is captured by authorities and subjected to nasty behavior-modification therapy.

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92% liked it

384,188 ratings

Critics

91% liked it

43 critics

R, 1 hr. 36 min.

Directed by: Stanley Kubrick

Release Date: December 19, 1971

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DVD Release Date: June 29, 1999

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Stats: 34,448 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (34,448)


  • January 10, 2010
    Probably the most solid example of a movie defined by it's performances, and in this case, by the screen persona of his main actor. Without Malcolm McDowell this would had look just strange and a bit forgettable, very well directed mind you, but not with the same energy.
  • September 20, 2009
    After a second viewing, I regret everything I said about it the first time. But, still, it's not my cup of tea.
  • September 11, 2009
    I wrote a paper on this in college. I don't remember what it was about. I also dont remember much about the movie. I know this is shameful, given that it's a classic and all. Whatever. I got an A, that was my main concern. I'll give it three stars for that.
  • September 4, 2009
    This film is a classic but maybe for all the wrong reasons. It's a contemporary warning in the style of Orwell but with out any of his credibility or reasoning. Still, you can't blame Kubrick for that, he adapted the story brilliantly and gave it its unique style that has never s...( read more)ince become unfashionable. McDowell is at his menacing best and the supporting cast is also strong. The film is only let down by its own notoriety, had it not been banned (or should I say, withdrawn) it probably wouldn't have reached the status it resides in. Anyone else think of Benny Hill/Confessions films during the sped up sex scene?
  • August 3, 2009
    I first saw this movie three years ago and I have been in love with it (and Stanley Kubrick) ever since. I never get tired of seeing this movie. Why it remains so underappreciated (at least by "casual" movie viewers) is beyond me. Everything is great; acting, direction, cinematog...( read more)raphy, the sets, everything. A Clockwork Orange is the finest film that has ever been made, in my view. Stanley Kubrick has made so many masterpieces, and is by far the best director that ever graced our world. A Clockwork Orange is simply his finest hour!

    The film grabs you and glues you to your seat from start to finish. Malcolm McDowell gives us a shining example of superior acting, and the movie is as perverted as any of Kubrick's masterpieces (and then some!). It contains horrifying violence, extreme emotions, perversity and weirdness at it's very worst. It all boils down to serve you a plethora of thoughts for you to take with you and contemplate, after the film ends.

    However, with all the perversity bursting out of this film, you will probably NOT like this film the first time you see it. I know I didn't. Fortunately, I gave it a second chance, and thought: Hey, it was actually not bad at all. After the third time, I was lost for words. After the fourth time, there was little doubt in my mind, that this was the finest film ever made, and regardless of how many great masterpieces I see, A Clockwork Orange still towers above them. I'm sure you'll agree, if you give it the chance it deserves, although it may require for you to see it more than once.
  • February 8, 2010
    Stanley Kubrick's best for sure...
    "Violent, cynical, frightening but sarcastic and comic at the same time..."
    One of the best performances ever by Malcolm McDowell...
  • February 7, 2010
    "Appy-polly-loggies. I had something of a pain in the gulliver so had to sleep. I was not awakened when I gave orders for wakening".-Alex De Large

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    Director:Stanley Kubrick
    Cast:Malcom McDowell,Patrick Magee,Mihcael Bates,Warren Clark
    Genre:Science Fiction,Thriller
    Year of release:1971
    Running Time:136 minutes

    Plot:
    Alex, a teenage hooligan in a near-future Britain, gets jailed by the police. There he volunteers as guinea pig for a new aversion therapy proposed by the government to make room in prisons for political prisoners. "Cured" of his hooliganism and released, he is rejected by his friends and relatives. Eventually nearly dying, he becomes a major embarrassment for the government, who arrange to cure him of his cure. A pivotal moment is when he and his gang break into an author's home: the book he is writing (called "A Clockwork Orange") is a plea against the use of aversion therapy, on the grounds that it turns people into Clockwork Oranges (Orang is Malay for "Man"): they are not being good from choice (sentiments later echoed by the prison chaplain). The film reflects this: many bad scenes in a Clockwork Orange are accompanied by jolly music; if we are to experience them as we should, we have to do it consciously, by realising they are bad, and not because the director tells us so through the use of music and images.

    Review:
    I didn t know what to expect about A Clockwork Orange because it looked such a violent and disturbing movie that bothered me at the beggining but as a Stanley Kubrick,i decided to watch this movie on TV and boy,this movie is absolutely stunning and it blew me away big time.A Clockwork Orange is one of the most shocking,disturbing,contorversial and definetly brilliant films of all time,showing a shocking vision of a futuristic and dystopic Britain.I really enjoyed this movie and i knew that A Clockwork Orange is a stunning masterpiece.

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    Malcom McDowell delvers a stunning,disturbing but briilaint perfomance as Alex De Large.Alex is a young delinquent who loves to create havoc with his friends in the streets of Britain but he went too far when he accidentaly kills a woman with,well,a penis statue.He gets arrested and he is subimted into a behavior modification therapy that changes his personality and makes him a peacefull person but the modification will make a impact in his own life and existence.McDowell s perfomance is absolutely brilliant because he looks so damn scary but at the same time very vulnerable and realistic aswell.This is probably Malcom McDowell s most memorable and popular role yet.

    Stanley Kubrick is one of the greatest directors of all time and i have no shame to say that.Kubrick shows all his brilliance and talent no making this amazing movie.The camera work is definetly one of the bests i ver ever seen in a movie that makes a Clockwork Orange such a enjoyable movie.

    A Clockwork Orange is a stunning masterpiece and definetly Kubrick s most contorversial and shocking movie but is such a great movie and deserves the title of one of the greatest movies of all time.Masterpiece.
  • February 6, 2010
    Come back & do a "proper" R/V.

    ***Don't forget to find that old LP of the original soundtrack (by ?Carlos Someone?......?died of a brain haemorrhage?.... I think.)***
  • February 5, 2010
    Kubrick was a genious, he turned violence in art and filmmakers like Tarantino really owe to this film. It's shocking and powerful, an extraordinary motion picture.
  • February 5, 2010
    Disturbing and brain washing and i love every second of it.

Critic Reviews


October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

A Clockwork Orange is an ideological mess, a paranoid right-wing fantasy masquerading as an Orwellian warning. full review

View more A Clockwork Orange reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • Slowbrah
    January 28, 2010
    Great movie or greatest movie?
  • kathyclark99
    January 27, 2010
    This is the worst movie I have ever seen. The violence committed against elderly people is horrible to watch. When this came out in the movie theaters, I wanted to walk out, but my date did not. One of the perpetrators of the horrible deeds totally gets away with it. The theme of this movie is just too horrible to think about. A waste of film, it should be shredded.
  • rebe141064
    June 29, 2009
    I can not even begin to describe what an effect this folm has had on my life and view of film. this and the godfather are the 2 greatest films ever.
  • R0L0D3X
    June 29, 2009
    It's a Really great film but, i woulden't watch it again it's so Distrubing.

    7/10
  • stefany2121
    June 6, 2009
    I love this movie so much! Alex DeLarge is the greatest villain ever! The history is amazing!

    My Review in spanish :
    A mí me pareció una excelente película. La actuación de Malcolm McDowell es muy realista.

    La película La Naranja Mecanica es genial porque se creó un lenguaje exclusivamente para la película y por el tema del control mental, que le dió el título a la obra. La película es muy futurista.

    Lo que tomaba Alex DeLarge no era un simple vaso de leche, el Moloko Plus era una leche con droga que lo preparaba para la ultra-violencia. Obra maestra.
  • jonaskmd
    April 21, 2009
    problaly the only story I've know that the movie is better than book. Sorry for Burgess's book fans, but Kubrick "enlighten" (oh yeah)the hole scene, characters, plot.
    Whata great movie

    cheers
  • 2or3things
    February 4, 2009
    anyone know anything about the impending remake? please tell me the rumors aren't true!
  • juliannecilley
    October 22, 2008
    If you didn't "get" this movie (note: if you thought it sucked, you didn't get it) read the book. Just do it. The significance of the political and moral themes is MUCH more prominant, especially when you include the last chapter, which wasn't included in the movie and isn't in some of the older versions of the book. Make sure it has 21 chapters (the 21st was edited out when it was released in the US).
  • arleya
    July 21, 2008
    hey my fav mov hah i think someone win to me on this, im want to say a clockwork orange will pass on TCM on 26 july at 23:30 hour of mexico, im so excited of see it again, im waiting more than a year about seeing on tv, enjoy it!
  • o0cynix0o
    June 19, 2008
    This movie is one of the best movies ever, next to Sin City. I tried to read the book but never finished.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Facts


  • Fun Fact:
    In a torture scene, Malcolm Macdowell's breathing apparatus broke, but he was held underwater anyway, as the other actors were unaware.
  • Fun Fact:
    The Car used by Alex and the droogs was the "Adams Probe 16", one of three ever made.
  • Fun Fact:
    Stanley Kubrick had his assistant destroy all unused footage.
  • Tagline:
    Being the adventures of a young man whose principal interests are rape, ultra-violence and Beethoven.

A Clockwork Orang... : Watch Free on TV


A Clockwork Orange Trivia


  • In which movie would you find a gang of Droogs?  Answer »
  • In what movie does Malcolm McDowell sing Singin' in the Rain while beating up a man and raping his wife?  Answer »
  • In this movie, the song "Singing in the rain" is used during a perverse, violent and shocking scene.  Answer »
  • After the hard work in making 2001: A Space Odyssey, Kubrick decided to make his next film as simple as possible, small budget, crew and lighting equipment. It was the the fastest film Kubrick shot, edited and released.  Answer »

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