The Clockwork Orange documentary & ban explained

A forbidden orange is a companion piece to Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of A Clockwork Orange And the crisis caused by the movie, as depicted in the documentary, is an interesting tale in itself. In a filmography like Stanley Kubrick’s, ranking movies can be a bit pointless. One person’s worst film can be another’s favorite, so praised and effective is Kubrick. A Clockwork OrangeFor example, is an incredibly nuanced dystopian crime film that has inspired decades of media afterward, however Has also attracted a considerable amount of negative attention.

Based on Anthony Burgess’ 1962 novel of the same name, A Clockwork Orange Takes place in a crime-infested, near-future Britain. There, Alex Delarge (Malcolm McDowell) is a monstrous delinquent who leads a group of hoodlums, the Droogs, who spend their time committing all sorts of horrific crimes. After he’s arrested, Alex is subjected to an experimental psychological conditioning technique that keeps him docile. A Clockwork Orange was referred to endlessly, but the response to its release was so furious that the 2021 documentary A forbidden orange Was made just about the worldwide reaction.

Kubrick withdrew a clockwork orange from cinemas in 1973

Kubrick was shocked by the response to his film

A Clockwork Orange was such a controversial film when it first hit theaters that even Kubrick thought the movie should be pulled from circulation, so that’s what he did. In 1972, the film was cited by a prosecutor in a court case (vi Dean of Geek). In this case, a 14-year-old was charged with manslaughter and the prosecutor pointed to A Clockwork Orange How inspiring his actions. The movie was quickly linked to more cases of “copycat” crimes. Protests against the film even took place outside Kubrick’s family home.

Kubrick was surprised by the reaction and argued that pinning real-life violence on the film was a mistake and that A Clockwork Orange was just one in a long line of movies that have been blamed for social ills. Despite his feelings, Kubrick acted, and after the initial theatrical run ended in the UK in 1973, Kubrick requested that Warner Brothers remove the film from circulation. As movies were not released on home video at the time, no one noticed the ban until 1979 when the National Film Theater was refused permission to screen the film.

It was Not until March 2000 that A Clockwork Orange Returning to British screens Legally. Shortly after Kubrick passed away, Warner Bros. applied for a rated certificate for the film, and of course it received an 18. The film hit UK cinemas on March 17, 2000, and a domestic release quickly followed. . The public’s response was surprisingly tame – public outrage at the film has clearly cooled over the decades.

A clockwork orange ban fans from around the world

Several countries have only recently unbanned the film

Other countries also ban or impose restrictions A Clockwork OrangeAnd they didn’t need Kubrick. The film was banned in Ireland in 1973, independent of Kubrick’s ban, but when the film came up for re-release in 1980, Kubrick’s ban extended to the shared UK-Ireland film distribution market and the country had to wait. Until Britain approves the film. Film (by Merlin). In Singapore, the film was banned for over 30 years until 2011, when the ban was lifted, and the film was screened as part of the Perspectives Film Festival (via yahoo).

A Clockwork Orange was banned in South Africa for 13 years under the apartheid regime (vi VisualMemory). It was later approved in 1984, albeit under strict viewing guidelines, including removing a scene from the film and making possession of the film on video illegal. The film was also banned in South Korea, Malaysia and Spain (via IOL). It was also banned in Brazil in 1978 (via Anthony Burgess). The film was banned in the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Nova Scotia until at least 1999 (via HNMag). Malta also banned the film until 2000 (via Kreativita).

Book bans from a clock orange

Several American high schools have banned the book for its offensive content

Kubrick’s adaptation of A Clockwork Orange This is not the first time that history has encountered controversy. The book version of A Clockwork Orange Also encountered some censorship issues, especially in the United States (viz Ala). In 1973, a bookseller in Orem, Utah was arrested for selling the novel and although the charges were dropped, the seller had to close the store and relocate. The book was removed from an Aurora, Colorado high school in 2006 and high schools in Westport, Massachusetts in 2007.

It was also removed from two high schools in Anniston, Alabama in 1982, but the books were later reinstated. It’s all a bit ironic considering that Burgess’ novel originally had 21 chapters (via The Book of Gems). The final chapter depicts Alex seeing the error of his ways. Burgess himself said that he was pressured to cut the chapter for the American version by his American publishers, because they insisted that American readers would appreciate a realistic and dark novel. It is possible that the American insistence on a dark tone has banned it from some American high schools.

A forbidden orange documents the Spanish premiere of the film

The documentary was released for the 50th anniversary of A Clockwork Orange

A forbidden orange is a 2021 documentary made for HBO Max in celebration of A Clockwork Oranges 50th anniversary. The documentary, narrated by Malcolm McDowell, is about the bans placed on Kubrick’s film, focusing specifically on his ban in Spain, which in the 1970s was under the rule of the fascist dictator Francisco Franco. His well-documented discouragement of art and cultural vitality meant that the film was not shown until 1975 when his rule began to weaken. This year, the city of Valladolid hosted an international film festival.

What they wanted to screen more than anything is the controversial A Clockwork Orange And despite the bomb threat, protests and a town with elderly conservative residents and progressive students who butted heads, the screening took place without incident. In a way, the documentary is mostly conflict-free. There is some dust before the opening of the film, but at the end of the movie, the only thing to show on the screen is long lines of people waiting in the theater and some ticket-printing issues.

A forbidden orange is still an interesting companion to A clockwork And shows just how important the movie was as a cultural statement, as much as it was an art.

A Clockwork Orange’s legacy and influence

Stanley Kubrick’s film remains a critical depiction of morality

A Clockwork Orange is now considered one of the greatest movies of all time, ranked number 243 in BFIs site and sound poll for 2022. That’s not to say it wasn’t acclaimed upon release either, and the film earned four Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. It also earned three Golden Globe nominations. A Clockwork Orange Has explicit nudity, violence and graphic depictions of sexual assault, but the message of the film is clear that these are not activities and ideals to aspire to.

Alex is not a heroic figure. He is evil, and for all intents and purposes, he is evil. Just because Alex does not end the film punished for his crimes in A Clockwork Orange Doesn’t mean that Kubrick and the movie are celebrating his actions. instead, A Clockwork Orange One wonders about the nature of “goodness” and if forcing someone to be good at the cost of their free will is itself an even worse crime. A forbidden orange Shows what happens when people refuse to grapple with the nuances of the movie.