The Heroism Concept in Two Kubrick’s Films

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The notion of an anti-hero has a long history in literature. However, it is difficult to determine the period of its first appearance in prose because the term’s meaning is broad and may be interpreted from various perspectives. Additionally, the phrase might be further subdivided into more specific subtypes based on many factors, such as historical periods and literary genres. As a result, there are several views about how an anti-hero develops. In general, an anti-hero is a literary protagonist who is characterized by selfish ambitions. Such characters usually feel like outcasts in society and descend into self-destruction, culminating in solitude or death. In other words, anti-hero characters lack common traits associated with typical film heroes.

Nevertheless, anti-hero protagonists have grown in popularity in recent years, particularly as the main characters in film and television. In Hollywood, this type of cinematic method is commonly associated with Stanley Kubrick, a renowned film director who died in 1999 (Naremore 1). Using Kubrick’s films, this essay demonstrates that, unlike other filmmakers, Kubrick favors flawed characters who are wicked and loathsome and incapable of eliciting the audience’s compassion for their plight.

A Clockwork Orange does not present viewers with the typical courageous and noble protagonist. Rather than that, they get Alex DeLarge, an endearing but deranged anti-hero (Munday 13). While Alex appears to be the movie’s protagonist, he misses the usual theatrical and classic “good guy” characteristics such as purity of soul and a desire for morality. As the movie progresses, he does not display the attributes of a typical, heroic lead character; instead, he falls right into the mantle of the anti-hero, engaging in deeds of extreme violence, encompassing rape and murder for his delight. He has friends he labels ‘droogs’ who have no objection to Alex’s acts. They only desire a greater degree of participation in the organizing of extreme violent activities. Here, Jaumont (21) argues that Alex and his sycophants represent youth behaviors that Kubrick portrays as unrestrained and aggressive. Thus, Alex and his ‘droogs’ are morally and socially irresponsible; they behave rashly without considering the consequences or ramifications. They exist to fulfill their sensual desires, which leads Alex far from the noble protagonist’s destiny.

Kubrick relies on extreme visuals and surrealistic or bizarre choices throughout the film, mainly to soften the savagery performed by Alex and his ‘droogs.’ These bizarre conflicts between what is seen and heard and how the viewer perceives them are a common theme in Kubrick’s work. According to Kagan (45), delaying the camera and distorting the sights are techniques he uses to make conflict sequences appear like dancing. For example, in one scene, Alex and his friends assault a writer and rape his wife while performing a song and kicking and punching to its cadence.

To Kubrick, the assault and the sexual violence are more like a joyful delight, not things to be hidden (Webster 32). Although it is appalling, Kubrick’s use of cartoonish lighting and camera tricks makes the audience feel at ease. A form of anti-redemption is also a part of it. One is tempted to view Alex and his ‘droogs’ as a possible vigilante gang that fights forces of evil after they rescue a damsel from being raped. However, it becomes evident that the victim’s misery was not essential after they started beating and raping another lady themselves. It is plausible to argue that Alex was only trying to destroy his rival’s enjoyment.

When Alex is sent to prison for his crimes, he consciously decides to take the path least chosen by leading men. His pretense, rather than a genuine attempt to change and impress the prison Chaplin to secure an early release, foretells his decline into an anti-hero. The scene of his interpretation of a gruesome biblical passage is a prime example of his dual sides of Alex. Proclaiming that he is sufficiently cured while visions of ultraviolence and sex swirl in his mind reflect his lack of inherent goodness. Kubrick does not only use the main characters to build this anti-hero theme. Many characters in the film other than Alex also portray anti-hero behaviors.

The Minister of the Interior is perhaps the only notable authoritative person in the hearings, and his practices of crime deterrence are comparable to torture. He is more focused on stopping controversies that might jeopardize his political aspirations. A similar comparison can be made with Mr. Deltoid, Alex’s parole office. At first, Kubrick portrays him as a nice person as he cautions Alex on the consequences of his misdeeds. Yet, he spoils that impression by happily spitting at Alex when he discovers his impending imprisonment. Another commanding character, the head guard, screams and lambasts the inmates and is solely concerned with following the correct process, underscoring that neither authority nor youngsters deserve respect in this movie (Crone 16). The movie’s anti-state rebels are also not purely nice people.

Mr. Alexander is initially depicted as the most compassionate individual, having lost his spouse and ability to walk in an incident related to Alex’s extreme brutality. When Alex comes home inadvertently and recounts his previous tribulations, Mr. Alexander and his companions resolve to exploit Alex in their battle against the state. However, things do not go as planned; he discovers his visitor and then torments him by playing one of Ludwig’s famous symphonies. Ultimately, this act compels Alex to take his life which is consistent with the fate of most anti-hero protagonists (Kagan 54). Although his rage is understandable, Mr. Alexander is ultimately little more than the adversary he wishes to defeat (Falsetto 76). He persecutes Alex in the same way he disdains the regime and intends to manipulate him as a tool in his plot. A Clockwork Orange is an unusual movie in which the viewer cannot fully sympathize with any one of the main protagonists. Audiences must merely have to accept a highly charismatic and morally corrupt figure and abandon their preconceived notions of automatically recognizing and bonding with the nice guy.

The Killing introduces the audience to Johnny Clay, a thief who plans to rob a racetrack of millions of dollars. Recently freed from Alcatraz Prison, he is on the prowl for an exit strategy. Johnny has ties to a horse racing establishment and a well-thought-out strategy to lift the vaults at the year’s most lucrative tournament. In the observer’s sight, Johnny appears to have devised a failsafe strategy, and the movie’s unstructured format keeps the audience on their heels. It requires them to analyze the plot from every viewpoint as it is viewed from a new perspective throughout the film (Falsetto 29). Even if the viewer anticipates seeing anything in one of the views that cause concern or suggest that the plot will fail, it never occurs.

Therefore, like any typical heist movie where the protagonist often escapes with the loot, the audience expects Johnny to have similar luck. Things get complicated when the crew is ambushed, and a gun battle ensues. The alternative plan was that everyone who had the stolen cash in their custody had to flee and remain secure if anything went wrong. Accordingly, Johnny purchases a large bag, packs the money, and boards a plane to Massachusetts with his girlfriend. However, Johnny’s downfall is caused by his substandard suitcase and an out-of-control rampaging toy dog. The dog spooks the cargo transport operator, who knocks on the suitcase containing the money to crash and break open. Airplane propellers fling cash around like confetti, scattering it in a second.

The tragic absurdity is that Johnny’s well-devised scheme, which included The Killing of the whole gang, is foiled by a dog and a suitcase. Specific circumstances in his downfall are undoubtedly due to his incompetence. Johnny was adequately astute to prepare a strategy for relocating the cash in an emergency, but he overlooked the logistics of storing and transporting it. A cheap bag and an aircraft were not the wisest choices. However, Johnny is not that bright because when his getaway attempts fail, he is incapable of acting immediately and lacks a way forward.

The Killing shows Kubrick’s mastery of the complicated, multi-layered story. During the robbery event, Kubrick seamlessly merges most of the actors in his big cast of characters into a compelling thriller. As a result, none of the roles appears unnecessary or underpowered (Crone 18). Johnny Clay’s plight is highlighted by Kubrick’s choice to recount this narrative out of chronological order, an aesthetic choice that emphasizes the tragic paradox of his situation as the heist unfolds. Subsequently, Kubrick uses this approach to introduce the anti-hero theme in this film. For example, he depicts a situation where personal weaknesses ruin a perfectly executed plan.

Kubrick also uses the unfulfilling union of George and Sherry Petty to support the anti-hero theme in The Killing. The two characters mark the beginning of Kubrick’s fascination with marriage in subsequent films. According to Webster (9), marriage is shown as home warfare in Kubrick’s films, which corresponds to the filmmaker’s preoccupation with the issue of war in the social realm as a whole. Using marriage as a vehicle, Kubrick explores faithfulness and betrayal and reveals the myriad reasons and flaws inherent in human nature.

Kubrick employs almost similar cinematic techniques in A Clockwork Orange and The Killing to develop the anti-hero storyline. In A Clockwork Orange, art appears to be used for good or bad and as a vehicle for expressing human emotions. From the actions of the film’s main protagonists, art can either elevate or stifle existence, which in Alex’s case, it is the latter. Sex and brutality in the movie are made to appear as if Kubrick stages them and, in this way, controls the viewer’s hate for the anti-hero tactics in the film.

In The Killing, Jonny Clay is portrayed as a professional thief but not clever enough to store hard-earned loot. This flaw makes it difficult for the audience to believe in his criminality. To this end, Kubrick’s fascination with the anti-hero theme cannot go unnoticed in his films. Although he tries to balance his fascination with violence, evil, and tragedy in both anti-hero films, it is evident that he barely does enough to convince the audience to sympathize with his flawed protagonists.

Works Cited

Crone, Rainer. Stanley Kubrick: Drama & Shadows; Photographs 1945-1950. Berlin: Phaidon, 2012. Print.

Falsetto, Mario. Stanley Kubrick: A Narrative and Stylistic Analysis. Westport, Conn. [u.a.: Praeger, 2001. Print.

Jaumont, Fabrice. Stanley Kubrick: The Odysseys. Books We Live by, 2018.

Kagan, Norman. The Cinema of Stanley Kubrick. Oxford: Roundhouse, 2000. Print.

Munday, Rod. “The Kubrick Cinematic UniverseMethod.” Essais. Revue interdisciplinaire d’Humanités Hors-série 4 (2018): 141-156.

Naremore, James. On Kubrick. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2019.

Webster, Patrick. Love and Death in Kubrick: A Critical Study of the Films from Lolita Through Eyes Wide Shut. Jefferson, N.C: McFarland & Co., Publishers, 2011. Internet resource.

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The Heroism Concept in Two Kubrick’s Films

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