Analysis Of Kubrick As Auteur

Essay by PaperNerd ContributorHigh School, 11th grade May 2001

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1- Stanley Kubrick is a name synonymous with bizarre, unnerving and controversial cinema. He is also known as one of the greatest modern directors having three of his films within the AFI's top fifty. So why is a figure so far out on the edge of society able to receive such critical acclaim? Pure talent and having a specific individual style that was constantly shifting to be more innovative and fresh. All of his films are raw and blunt forcing you to think about the things you are seeing as well as hearing. Kubrick's style is drawn out and deliberate, with a need for perfection comparative to the rumors about Hitchcock and his need for complete control. At no time does it seem like something just happens in a Kubrick film it appears rather that every detail was meticulously cared for and planed. Yet it is all done in a world that ends up looking stunningly real to the viewer.

Perhaps this is due to his need for perfection, for example when making "The Shining"� the ratio of film shot to that which was actually used was 120:1, meaning that for his two hour film Kubrick shot two hundred and forty hours worth of footage. But most critics agree it is Kubrick's use of the camera and characters within their surroundings that makes his images so true. This ability to capture emotion and tone of a scene so powerfully stems back to Kubrick's early years as a still photographer for the magazine LOOK. Reflections of this background are shown in scenes such as the opening of "A Clockwork Orange"� in which we see a close shot of Alex's face for almost twenty seconds before the camera starts to move. The movement however is only a dolly back keeping the integrity...