A Clockwork Orange: Good Riddance To Bad Rubbish :: essays research papers

A Clockwork Orange: Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish A Clockwork Orange received critical acclaim, made more than thirty million dollars at the box office, and was nominated for various awards; however, this esteemed film was outlawed from the nation of Great Britain in order to curb its immoral content from permeating society. Before all the controversy began, A Clockwork Orange was a novel, written mostly in Russian, by Anthony Burgess. Stanley Kubrick is known to critics as a film maker who probes the dark side of human psyche. Kubrick has also directed films such as Dr. Strangelove, The Shining, and Full Metal Jacket. In each of these movies the audience delves into the evil side of the main character. Great Britain had this film removed from theaters across the country because the government justly illustrated there was a connection between the movie's graphic violence and an increased crime rate. In Clockwork . . . , there are unquestionably violent and graphic actions. Multiple beatings, a rape, and a murder are performed by the lead characters. These crimes are drug induced. Before going out, the gang goes to the "milk bar" for some "milk plus" which is riddled with amphetamines. The first violent act came not more than ten minutes into the movie. It was when the boys, led by Alex, beat a helpless wino that asked them for some change. The gang then strode away as if nothing occurred. They struck him repeatedly with canes and they kicked him a few times to the job. Next, the boys went to see a rival gang. This other group was in the middle of raping a woman when Alex and Company came in and intervened. They proceeded to beat the other gang members to a pulp. Then, they went to the house of a writer, to burglarize it. While there, they brutalized the writer and his wife. Alex raped the wife in front of the writer and then started to sing "Sing'n in the Rain" as he pummeled the old man. Alex's final act of violence came at the house of a rich health spa owner. The gang went there with the intent of robbing the place, but the woman who lived there was alert to the scheme and called the police. She attacked Alex and he defended himself with a sculpture of male genitalia. The fight ended when Alex crammed the statue in the mouth of the victim, and killed her. These were some of the more graphic scenes, which aided Britain's decision to ban the film. Incidents from this film triggered an onslaught of violent crimes across