He was born in 1928. At 16 he was hired by LOOK magazine as a freelancer after he took a very impressive shot of a news vendor the day President Theodore Roosevelt died. He then made a documentary on boxing which is something I'm extremely interested in because I am a boxer myself. He then went on to make such movie greats such as Dr. Strangelove, A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining, and 2001: A Space Odyssey. 2001: A Space Odyssey received an Oscar for it's special effects. This was Kubrick's only Oscar.
At the start of the production for Eyes Wide Shut in 1999, Kubrick was found dead in his sleep soon after he turned his final cut of the film in. The movie was released later that year and was number one at the box office. It was one of his biggest hits in his entire career. It starred Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise.
Let's take a look at two of Kubricks greatest movies in A Clockwork Orange and Eyes Wide Shut.
A Clockwork Orange is a movie I actually got the pleasure to see in a film where we actually analyzed the film. Kubrick brought this character Alex to life who was an absolute insane individual who was very childish but would perform horrible acts with his friends such as rape. In the rape scene, it is almost a performance and you almost laugh even though it's such a horrible scene. You despise him. However, while watching him go through this transformation brought about by the prison and seeing all of the people he had screwed over get back at him in the end, you actually feel very sorry for him. Kubrick had this wierd way of being able to bring conflicting emotions to life and almost give the audience an inner struggle as to if they should really agree with moral standards or go against them and laugh at something that is crude and shunned by society. He brought this to reality in A Clockwork Orange.
I actually didn't get the pleasure to see his biggest film Eyes Wide Shut, but I've heard many things from critics as well as people that I know that have gotten the privilege to see the film. In many ways it is a very complex psychological thriller. He really gets viewers to think in this movie and I think that is what makes it so intriguing. Maybe that is why it is considered his greatest film to date, however, I feel he has done a great deal with his other films as well, especially the ones I have had the pleasure of seeing.
Kubrick's creativity his what really got him places. That and the fact that he was just so talented. He had great composition and he really knew what shots to put where. With that being said, the actors found to portray the creative and unique characters in all of his films definitely contributed to the absolute greatness that each of his films were able to achieve. His though process allow him to bring new worlds to the audience. 2001: A Space Odyssey was way ahead of its time although Kubrick was only able to do so through his thought process. Not many people are so gifted with this thought process. To quote Kubrick,
"A film is - or should be - more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what's behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later."
I feel the way that he was able to create and build conflicting emotions off the actions that the characters portray in his film completely exemplifies his quote.
So as you can see, Stanley Kubrick is not only one of the greatest film makers of all time but he is also one of the greatest thinkers of all time. His work will never be forgotten even after his death. It can be seen at the expense of his last film Eyes Wide Shut after he died, it ended up be the most popular film in his career. Kubrick's work will continue to inspire the many film makers and audiences to come. If you even have a chance, check out one of his many films because you will be able to see an artist give a masterful performance.
Warner, Brothers. "Stanley Kubrick Collection Official Authorized Site(Warner Bros)". Warner Brothers. 12/16/09
