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What's your favorite Kubrick movie?
I guess I'd have to pick DR. STRANGELOVE. Satire with shark's teeth.
THE KILLING: A highly entertaining heist movie, with a suitable cast. No deep thinking, just fun.
PATHS OF GLORY: Devastating war movie-courtroom drama. Its particular focus is on power within military hierarchies. Kirk Douglas at his best.
SPARTACUS: Kubrick hated this movie. He'd replaced Anthony Mann as director, and he didn't have as much control as he wanted over the production. It doesn't always get the facts right--Spartacus wasn't an idealist born into slavery, he was a captured bandit--and some of the dialogue is corny. (The last time I saw the movie, John Dall's delivery of the line "I don't know how I shall ever repay you" prompted audience laughter.) Yet it's one of the most intelligent and stirring of the ancient epics that proliferated in the '50s and '60s. Great music by Alex North.
LOLITA: A curiosity. Nabokov's novel isn't really filmable. But there are fine performances by James Mason, Peter Sellers and Shelly Winters.
2001: I'm not sure I understood this one. I'll have to see it again soon.
A CLOCKWORK ORANGE: I'm of two minds about this one. It's well-made, with a witty performance by Malcolm MacDowell. But it's satire seems rather heavy-handed. (The scene where Patrick Magee realizes MacDowell's true identity is a little much.)
BARRY LYNDON: Another curiosity. It's beautifully made, and I found the first hour spellbinding. But the movie went on (and on and on), and the pace was too slow for me. I'll have to see that one again too: maybe it improves on second viewing.
THE SHINING: As a horror movie, it isn't really successful. But it has a lot of interesting touches, like the maze chase where Jack Nicholson carries the axe with the gait of a caveman, and the scene where Shelly Duvall reads her husband's writing. (The latter scene is the scariest in the movie, but if you haven't seen the movie don't read Pauline Kael's review! She spoils that scene in order to make a fancy closing point.)
FULL METAL JACKET: One of the best movies about the Vietnam War, though it's somehow more about war in general. Lee Ermey dominates the first half as the Drill Instructor from you-know-where. ("I don't like the name Lawrence. Only faggots and sailors are called Lawrence.")
EYES WIDE SHUT: My vote is against. I liked the first hour, and Nicole Kidman gave a suitable performance. But each scene was better than the next. I would have edited out most of the third hour. And the subplot about the customer and his daughter was stupid, tasteless and unfunny.
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