Stanley Kubrick: notable work

Stanley Kubrick: Some of his most notable work in film

In the 'My blog' post, I briefly mentioned two directors of whom I was currently interested in. One of these directors was Quentin Tarantino; whom I felt fairly comfortable with at the time. The second director was Stanley Kubrick. 

Stanley Kubrick was born on July 26, 1928, and died aged 70 on March 7, 1999. He was an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer, and editor, and his work has been described by film critics such as Michel Ciment as being "among the most important contributions to world cinema in the twentieth century". Although many his films were controversial with mixed reviews at the time, it's now easy to say that Stanley Kubrick was a once in a lifetime talent.

Starting off as a photographer, Kubrick moved onto short documentary films and feature films and begun making a name for himself with his always-obvious unique talents for working with film. 

From there; Kubrick's next two films Killer's Kiss (1955) and The Killing (1956) put him firmly on the radar of Hollywood, for his impressive unconventional multi-perspective storytelling and script. Generations later, The Killing has gained a bit of a 'cult' following among noir films for its influential and stylish nature, even though at the time it was a financial failure, making a loss. 

Having attracted Hollywood, Stanley Kubrick was asked to direct 'Paths of Glory'; an anti-war film starring legendary actor Kirk Douglas. It was only an average box office success, but once again it earned Kubrick much critical acclaim, being nominated for a BAFTA Award under the category Best Film. This success propelled Kubrick onto another film with Kirk Douglas, 'Spartacus' - a film about Spartacus the gladiator. Taking command of the project, many of the crew complained that Kubrick was taking over their jobs, the cinematographer, Russell Metty,claimed that Stanley apparently told him to “sit there and do nothing”! Comically, Metty ended up winning Academy Award for Best Cinematography!

It was with Kubrick's next film, Lolita, that he begun to show his tremendous versatility. So far in his career he had made documentaries, a 'film noir' on a heist, a historical epic, an anti-war film and more,and now he was moving onto a black comedy. The film, which was centered around a middle-aged man who becomes obsessed with a teenage girl - attracted criticism for its controversial nature, but following the pattern of Kubrick's other work - garnered praise and several nominations and awards. Kubrick's next film was "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb" (we'll just call it Dr Strangelove!) was also a black comedy, satirizing the nuclear threat of the Cold War, and was a massive success. Winning many BAFTA Awards including best British film.

And again; Stanley's ability for versatility was put on display with his next film. Five years in the making; 2001: A Space Odyssey was the first ultimate classic of the science fiction genre. Creating a huge legacy with its inspired use of special effects, before unseen depictions and ideas for future technology and excellent choice of music. There has even been a documentary starring sci-fi greats such as George Lucas named Standing on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of 2001. Legacy.

Always wanting to stretch what was conventional in cinema, he moved onto 'A Clockwork Orange'. Polarizing yet ultimately successful, 'A Clockwork Orange' was popular in the States, yet a series of crimes which had been linked back to 'A Clockwork Orange' as copycat crimes (I think it is ridiculous to blame TV, film or games for violent crimes) led to Kubrick withdrawing the film from British production. It was a science fiction crime film which used violent imagery and ideas to discuss a dystopian future Britian... in creepy ways. As you can see below I'm sure.

One of the genres that Kubrick had not yet explored was horror. When offered a seemingly perfect opportunity however, being asked to direct the sequel to The Exorcist, it was baffling. His ability showcased in 'A Clockwork Orange' to create a bit of an 'ergh' feeling would have been suited perfectly to horror. Well it's because Kubrick decided to adapt Stephen King's classic 'The Shining'. Having recently been awarded top spot on a study claiming that the "Heeeere's Johnny!" scene is the scariest in movie history, 'The Shining' clearly went down a (trick or) treat. * The film quickly took in a cult following, with many of them nit picking and various scenes to find an overall meaning of the film, even producing radical ideas such as it being Kubrick's admittance to filming the oh-so-obviously-faked moon landings. Yeah... no.

With the influence that so many of Kubrick's films have had on television and film making, it'd be hard to choose which one had the greatest impact. If I had to choose, it'd be '2001: A Space Odyssey', for paving the way in special effects and technology in science fiction.