Ranking the Films of Stanley Kubrick
I’m not sure anything I write about Stanley Kubrick is going to do justice to either his brilliant oeuvre or the thousands upon thousands of scholarly words written about him. All I’ll say is that it’s been a joy to watch (rewatch, for the most part, actually) his films and learn more about his directorial […]
Room 237
It’d be hard for a cinephile to not find at least something enjoyable in Rodney Ascher’s new documentary Room 237. The film is a deep dive into Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining—arguably the strangest movie within the strongest filmography of all time. It’s so strange, in fact, that five individuals have had their lives turned upside-down […]
Eyes Wide Shut Review
RATING: (4 STARS) If The Shining was Stanley Kubrick‘s experimentation with the horror conventions, his final film, 1999’s Eyes Wide Shut, is his perfection of them. Not since, The Silence of the Lambs (maybe even The Thing or Alien) has pure dread been so eloquently captured on film. And it’s arguably not even a horror […]
Full Metal Jacket Review
RATING: (3.5 STARS) In the immediate aftermath of the Vietnam War, Hollywood produced a series of spectacular anti-war films—The Deer Hunter, Coming Home, Apocalypse Now. Time, it seems, doesn’t heal all wounds as, almost a decade later, Oliver Stone’s Oscar-winning Platoon kicked off a second wave of Vietnam pictures. The world’s greatest director, Stanley Kubrick, […]
The Shining Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Stanley Kubrick’s cinematic interpretation of Stephen King’s The Shining is … interesting. Technically, he’s on surer footing than perhaps ever before (I’d argue 2001 is a bigger achievement, but in terms of scope, The Shining does more with less). Thematically, some really challenging things are going down. But Kubrick’s ability to tell […]
Barry Lyndon Review
RATING: (4 STARS) One would think a three-hour British period drama would be something to endure, rather than enjoy, but Barry Lyndon is damn near a flawless film. Not only that, it’s also endlessly watchable. It’s as well-paced and plotted as any film I can recollect, and director Stanley Kubrick‘s sense of time and place […]
A Clockwork Orange Review
RATING: (4 STARS) It’s hard to watch a film set in the future, especially a dystopian one, and not compare it to A Clockwork Orange, the brutal 1971 movie directed by Stanley Kubrick. That’s because it’s a stunningly directed film, and the world captured by Kubrick is among the most frightening in movie history. It’s […]
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb Review
RATING: (4 STARS) Comedy doesn’t get much darker than Dr. Strangelove, which is Stanley Kubrick‘s grand “F— you” to the chaos that was the Cold War arms race. Loaded with timeless characters, jokes, and images, the film is equal parts hilarious and frightening. Classic performances abound, the film is perhaps best remembered for Peter Sellers‘ […]
Lolita Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Lolita is a weird movie, even for Stanley Kubrick. The poster for it brilliantly reads “How did they ever make a movie out of Lolita?” It’s a fair question. One can’t help but think it would take a miracle to turn Vladimir Nabokov‘s blistering novel into a movie today—nevermind 1962. But if […]
Spartacus Review
RATING: (3 STARS) It’s been written by many that Spartacus was more the baby of Kirk Douglas than Stanley Kubrick, and whether that’s true or not, it’s easy to see why such an opinion still persists decades later. Despite featuring many touches that can only be described as Kubrickian, the film is formulaic to a […]
The Killing Review
RATING: (3.5 STARS) Though his later films would take us to space, the battlefront, the war room, and a very haunted hotel, Stanley Kubrick got his start in the seedy world of film noir. Killer’s Kiss was his first foray into this genre, and though generally unremarkable, it gets by thanks to its director’s ahead-of-its-time […]
Paths of Glory Review
RATING: (4 STARS) Even the most fervent foreign policy hawks would likely have a hard time disputing the anti-war message in Stanley Kubrick’s Paths of Glory. The 1957 film, which really signaled the director’s arrival on the big stage, preaches without seeming too preachy, and horrifies while avoiding some potentially horrifying imagery. What’s frightening about […]
A.I. Artificial Intelligence Review
RATING: (3.5 STARS) The origins of A.I. are well-known. The story was the brainchild of Stanley Kubrick, but he refused to make it into a film until technology was advanced enough to do it justice. He died before ever getting the chance to make the film. Enter Steven Spielberg, who was entranced by Kubrick’s story. […]
2001: A Space Odyssey Review
RATING: (4 STARS) “2001: A Space Odyssey†is a transcendent experience. Calling it a film is an injustice, for it is so much more than that. It is a thought-provoking piece of art. No film has stuck with me the way this one did the first time I saw it. It’s hypnotic in a way. […]
