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A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

theguardian.com

71–80 of 143 posts

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#71
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Kubrick’s results were all over the map. He made maybe three great films: Dr. Strangelove Full Metal Jacket A Clockwork Orange A bunch of not bad films: 2001 Lolita Barry Lyndon The Shining Spartacus One real turd of a film: Eyes Wide Shut And a bunch of forgettable filler: All the other films he made. Compare this to the Anti-Kubrick, Clint Eastwood, who made: Unforgiven Mystic River Million Dollar Baby Letters From…

2001 was "not bad"????

2001 Lolita Barry Lyndon The Shining Spartacus

these "mid" films would be among the top 10 ever easily

but according to him "tough" guy Eastwood can surpass it

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#72

I have to say that the 'critical' quotations from the book are uncharacteristic of a project where the target of the biography (and this is a kind of biography) is cooperating and participating - and particularly when they have veto. Most writers know the score in this respect: unauthorized coverage is harder-hitting and may be more accurate, whereas authorized coverage has inside scoops, but is unlikely to be allowe…

Think the issue is, Kubrick was so sensitive, that even the most mild criticism was taken badly. So the author knows the score, and treads lightly, and is still jumped on. The author was hired to do a 'nice' book, and was pretty nice but the customer was a Prima donna and rejected it anyway. Think we've all encountered bad customers like this.

I don't know - I think the author was hoping for tremendous indulgence from Kubrick when attempting to get him to green-light quotes like:

'There are good things in Lolita. But in too many respects it squanders, impoverishes and conventionalises its source material, draining it of its complexity, nymphetry and eroticism.'

It's valid criticism, because it's a point of view, but I wouldn't expect anything quite that harsh in a collaborative work.

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#73
post #31
post #19

> "There are good things in Lolita. But in too many respects it squanders, impoverishes and conventionalises its source material, draining it of its complexity, nymphetry and eroticism." I think anyone who has read Nabokov's novel would agree that Lolita really isn't a great adaptation of the book. I think it is by far Kubrick's weakest film. There is a deep cynic darkness to the book that the movie misses completely…

There are also things that are still in the realm of the acceptable in a book but that would go too far in a movie.

Perhaps in 1962, a big studio. But if Lolita had been tackled just a decade later when we had entered in the anything-goes era of filmmaking....

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#74
post #5

Doesn't seem that controversial. A publisher commissioned a book about the films of Stanley Kubrick, agreeing that Kubrick would be able to veto publishing of the text if he didn't like it. He didn't like it, didn't sign off on it, and the book was never published.

From the article, it appears the big sadness for the author was he wrote back and said he was happy to work with Kubrick to discuss getting it to where he was more comfortable with it, Kubrick never responded, and then sent lawyers. That's all that's rough for the writer, here.

Saying I'd like to work with you to get this shippable is saying "I'm willing to let you put in an enormous amount of free labor as an editor."

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#75
post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, she is a “nymphette” in the book. That novel is so well written and not even in the author’s native language.

Actually in the book she is really not. She is a 12 year old child being sexualised in the mind of the narrator. She doesn't act seductively, the narrator sees whatever she does in a perverted way. There is a famous interview on French TV where Nabokov says as much (in French) [0] [0] https://www.ina.fr/actualites-ina/mon-archive-preferee/mon-a...

I suppose that your interpretation would be dependent on if you are postmodernist or not and if you believe in the death of the author.

I have never read the book or seen the file but the work is very interesting to me as when it get brought up people will start claiming all sorts of things from it.

I think the most insane from my point of view was when I heard/saw(can't remember if online or in person) an argument that all men are perverted and want to rape children. The proof was quotes from Lolita....

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#76

Stanley Kubrick was one of that kind of people who cannot take criticism of anything they do.

That's too bad. I understand that as a young filmmaker with an ego, but your supposed to lose that ego as you mature both emotionally and as an artist.

As surprising as it might be, narcissistic personality disorder won’t go away simply as people age, especially if they live in a social bubble where they are sent overall continuous positive feedback that society is very pleased at the global result of their behavior.

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#77
post #22

I highly recommend the documentary Filmworker to anyone interested in Stanley Kubrick's character. It's about Leon Vitali, the actor who played Lord Bullingdon (the neurotic brother of Lady Lyndon) in Barry Lyndon . After filming Barry Lyndon, he quit acting and became Kubricks personal assistant / factotum for over 20 years. Although some would say he was Kubrick's personal slave. It is utterly shocking to see how b…

How is this any different than say working at Tesla today?

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#78
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Kubrick’s results were all over the map. He made maybe three great films: Dr. Strangelove Full Metal Jacket A Clockwork Orange A bunch of not bad films: 2001 Lolita Barry Lyndon The Shining Spartacus One real turd of a film: Eyes Wide Shut And a bunch of forgettable filler: All the other films he made. Compare this to the Anti-Kubrick, Clint Eastwood, who made: Unforgiven Mystic River Million Dollar Baby Letters From…

2001 was "not bad"????

Jumping into this with a "spicy" personal opinion.

How I would rate 2001 depends entirely on my criteria.

For cinematography and vfx I would give it an 11 out of 10. Ground breaking.

For story and entertainment, I'd give it a -1. It is an anti-film in that sense. The most mind-numbingly boring and drawn out piece of "film" that I have ever had the displeasure of trying to sit through.

And I say that as a self-professed film nerd. I admire Kubrick a lot. But I can't stand 2001, at least when I judge it by the same criteria that I judge other films.

Film is visual story telling. Emphasis on "story."

Putting aside Dave & Hal (which make their appearance so late into the "film" that I've already been asleep for 3 hours - yes I'm exaggerating), when you take away identifiable protaganoists and antagonists, with backstories, goals, motivations and obstacles what you are left with is more of an exhibition.

2001 was more of a 1960s speculative endeavour into humanity's future at the dawn of the space age than it was a story told through imagery. It lacked plot, character development, relatibility and it's pacing was so slow and drawn out that it's hard to maintain your attention throughout.

When you judge it for what it was, there is a lot of greatness there. Many of its visual effects were truly groundbreaking and influenced filmmaking for decades to come.

But when you compare it to films that you actually want to re-watch for entertainment value ... I would put it in the "awful" category. But that's just my personal opinion.

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#79
post #66
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Kubrick’s results were all over the map. He made maybe three great films: Dr. Strangelove Full Metal Jacket A Clockwork Orange A bunch of not bad films: 2001 Lolita Barry Lyndon The Shining Spartacus One real turd of a film: Eyes Wide Shut And a bunch of forgettable filler: All the other films he made. Compare this to the Anti-Kubrick, Clint Eastwood, who made: Unforgiven Mystic River Million Dollar Baby Letters From…

sorry but Eastwood is not in the same league as Kubrick, by a long mile. just ask reddit and reverse the results to know who is better

Note to self: In future it's definitely best to respond to all bait with "just ask reddit".

Re: A book Stanley Kubrick didn’t want anyone to read is being published

#80

Stanley Kubrick was one of that kind of people who cannot take criticism of anything they do.

That's too bad. I understand that as a young filmmaker with an ego, but your supposed to lose that ego as you mature both emotionally and as an artist.

Directors to a certain extent need to dominate, it’s the nature of the job.

If you’re the one organising 30 to 50 people on a set with a good many of them also being egos (think actors for example), you have to make hard decisions and to certain extent be that unpopular leader.

On the other hand, there also plenty of soft spoken directors that use soft power to manage a set.

Just want to point out that directing isn’t an easy job at times and how that gets handled various from director to director.

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