Stanley Kubrick(1928-1999)
- Director
- Writer
- Producer
Stanley Kubrick was born in Manhattan, New York City, to Sadie Gertrude (Perveler) and Jacob Leonard Kubrick, a physician. His family were Jewish immigrants (from Austria, Romania, and Russia). Stanley was considered intelligent, despite poor grades at school. Hoping that a change of scenery would
produce better academic performance, Kubrick's father sent him in 1940 to Pasadena, California, to stay with his
uncle, Martin Perveler. Returning to the
Bronx in 1941 for his last year of grammar school, there seemed to be
little change in his attitude or his results. Hoping to find something
to interest his son, Jack introduced Stanley to chess, with the desired
result. Kubrick took to the game passionately, and quickly became a
skilled player. Chess would become an important device for Kubrick in
later years, often as a tool for dealing with recalcitrant actors, but
also as an artistic motif in his films.
Jack Kubrick's decision to give his son a camera for his thirteenth
birthday would be an even wiser move: Kubrick became an avid
photographer, and would often make trips around New York taking
photographs which he would develop in a friend's darkroom. After
selling an unsolicited photograph to Look Magazine, Kubrick began to
associate with their staff photographers, and at the age of seventeen
was offered a job as an apprentice photographer.
In the next few years, Kubrick had regular assignments for "Look", and
would become a voracious movie-goer. Together with friend
Alexander Singer, Kubrick
planned a move into film, and in 1950 sank his savings into making the
documentary
Day of the Fight (1951). This
was followed by several short commissioned documentaries
(Flying Padre (1951),
and (The Seafarers (1953), but by
attracting investors and hustling chess games in Central Park, Kubrick
was able to make
Fear and Desire (1952) in
California.
Filming this movie was not a happy experience; Kubrick's marriage to
high school sweetheart Toba Metz did not survive the shooting. Despite
mixed reviews for the film itself, Kubrick received good notices for
his obvious directorial talents. Kubrick's next two films
Killer's Kiss (1955) and
The Killing (1956) brought him to the
attention of Hollywood, and in 1957 he directed
Kirk Douglas in
Paths of Glory (1957). Douglas
later called upon Kubrick to take over the production of
Spartacus (1960), by some accounts
hoping that Kubrick would be daunted by the scale of the project and
would thus be accommodating. This was not the case, however: Kubrick
took charge of the project, imposing his ideas and standards on the
film. Many crew members were upset by his style: cinematographer
Russell Metty complained to producers that
Kubrick was taking over his job. Kubrick's response was to tell him to
sit there and do nothing. Metty complied, and ironically was awarded
the Academy Award for his cinematography.
Kubrick's next project was to direct
Marlon Brando in
One-Eyed Jacks (1961), but
negotiations broke down and Brando himself ended up directing the film
himself. Disenchanted with Hollywood and after another failed marriage,
Kubrick moved permanently to England, from where he would make all of
his subsequent films. Despite having obtained a pilot's license,
Kubrick was rumored to be afraid of flying.
Kubrick's first UK film was Lolita (1962),
which was carefully constructed and guided so as to not offend the
censorship boards which at the time had the power to severely damage
the commercial success of a film.
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
was a big risk for Kubrick; before this, "nuclear" was not considered a
subject for comedy. Originally written as a drama, Kubrick decided that
too many of the ideas he had written were just too funny to be taken
seriously. The film's critical and commercial success allowed Kubrick
the financial and artistic freedom to work on any project he desired.
Around this time, Kubrick's focus diversified and he would always have
several projects in various stages of development: "Blue Moon" (a story
about Hollywood's first pornographic feature film), "Napoleon" (an epic
historical biography, abandoned after studio losses on similar
projects), "Wartime Lies" (based on the novel by Louis Begley), and
"Rhapsody" (a psycho-sexual thriller).
The next film he completed was a collaboration with sci-fi author
Arthur C. Clarke.
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
is hailed by many as the best ever made; an instant cult favorite, it
has set the standard and tone for many science fiction films that
followed. Kubrick followed this with
A Clockwork Orange (1971),
which rivaled Lolita (1962) for the
controversy it generated - this time not only for its portrayal of sex,
but also of violence.
Barry Lyndon (1975) would prove a
turning point in both his professional and private lives. His
unrelenting demands of commitment and perfection of cast and crew had
by now become legendary. Actors would be required to perform dozens of
takes with no breaks. Filming a story in Ireland involving military,
Kubrick received reports that the IRA had declared him a possible
target. Production was promptly moved out of the country, and Kubrick's
desire for privacy and security resulted in him being considered a
recluse ever since.
Having turned down directing a sequel to
The Exorcist (1973), Kubrick made
his own horror film:
The Shining (1980). Again, rumors
circulated of demands made upon actors and crew.
Stephen King (whose novel the film
was based upon) reportedly didn't like Kubrick's adaptation (indeed, he
would later write his own screenplay which was filmed as
The Shining (1997).)
Kubrick's subsequent work has been well spaced: it was seven years
before Full Metal Jacket (1987)
was released. By this time, Kubrick was married with children and had
extensively remodeled his house. Seen by one critic as the dark side to
the humanist story of Platoon (1986),
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
continued Kubrick's legacy of solid critical acclaim, and profit at the
box office.
In the 1990s, Kubrick began an on-again/off-again collaboration with
Brian Aldiss on a new science fiction film
called "Artificial Intelligence (AI)", but progress was very slow, and
was backgrounded until special effects technology was up to the
standard the Kubrick wanted.
Kubrick returned to his in-development projects, but encountered a
number of problems: "Napoleon" was completely dead, and "Wartime Lies"
(now called "The Aryan Papers") was abandoned when
Steven Spielberg announced he would
direct Schindler's List (1993),
which covered much of the same material.
While pre-production work on "AI" crawled along, Kubrick combined
"Rhapsody" and "Blue Movie" and officially announced his next project
as Eyes Wide Shut (1999), starring
the then-married Tom Cruise and
Nicole Kidman. After two years of
production under unprecedented security and privacy, the film was
released to a typically polarized critical and public reception;
Kubrick claimed it was his best film to date.
Special effects technology had matured rapidly in the meantime, and
Kubrick immediately began active work on
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001),
but tragically suffered a fatal heart attack in his sleep on March 7th,
1999.
After Kubrick's death, Spielberg revealed that the two of them were
friends that frequently communicated discreetly about the art of
filmmaking; both had a large degree of mutual respect for each other's
work. "AI" was frequently discussed; Kubrick even suggested that
Spielberg should direct it as it was more his type of project. Based on
this relationship, Spielberg took over as the film's director and
completed the last Kubrick project.
How much of Kubrick's vision remains in the finished project -- and
what he would think of the film as eventually released -- will be the
final great unanswerable mysteries in the life of this talented and
private filmmaker.
produce better academic performance, Kubrick's father sent him in 1940 to Pasadena, California, to stay with his
uncle, Martin Perveler. Returning to the
Bronx in 1941 for his last year of grammar school, there seemed to be
little change in his attitude or his results. Hoping to find something
to interest his son, Jack introduced Stanley to chess, with the desired
result. Kubrick took to the game passionately, and quickly became a
skilled player. Chess would become an important device for Kubrick in
later years, often as a tool for dealing with recalcitrant actors, but
also as an artistic motif in his films.
Jack Kubrick's decision to give his son a camera for his thirteenth
birthday would be an even wiser move: Kubrick became an avid
photographer, and would often make trips around New York taking
photographs which he would develop in a friend's darkroom. After
selling an unsolicited photograph to Look Magazine, Kubrick began to
associate with their staff photographers, and at the age of seventeen
was offered a job as an apprentice photographer.
In the next few years, Kubrick had regular assignments for "Look", and
would become a voracious movie-goer. Together with friend
Alexander Singer, Kubrick
planned a move into film, and in 1950 sank his savings into making the
documentary
Day of the Fight (1951). This
was followed by several short commissioned documentaries
(Flying Padre (1951),
and (The Seafarers (1953), but by
attracting investors and hustling chess games in Central Park, Kubrick
was able to make
Fear and Desire (1952) in
California.
Filming this movie was not a happy experience; Kubrick's marriage to
high school sweetheart Toba Metz did not survive the shooting. Despite
mixed reviews for the film itself, Kubrick received good notices for
his obvious directorial talents. Kubrick's next two films
Killer's Kiss (1955) and
The Killing (1956) brought him to the
attention of Hollywood, and in 1957 he directed
Kirk Douglas in
Paths of Glory (1957). Douglas
later called upon Kubrick to take over the production of
Spartacus (1960), by some accounts
hoping that Kubrick would be daunted by the scale of the project and
would thus be accommodating. This was not the case, however: Kubrick
took charge of the project, imposing his ideas and standards on the
film. Many crew members were upset by his style: cinematographer
Russell Metty complained to producers that
Kubrick was taking over his job. Kubrick's response was to tell him to
sit there and do nothing. Metty complied, and ironically was awarded
the Academy Award for his cinematography.
Kubrick's next project was to direct
Marlon Brando in
One-Eyed Jacks (1961), but
negotiations broke down and Brando himself ended up directing the film
himself. Disenchanted with Hollywood and after another failed marriage,
Kubrick moved permanently to England, from where he would make all of
his subsequent films. Despite having obtained a pilot's license,
Kubrick was rumored to be afraid of flying.
Kubrick's first UK film was Lolita (1962),
which was carefully constructed and guided so as to not offend the
censorship boards which at the time had the power to severely damage
the commercial success of a film.
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
was a big risk for Kubrick; before this, "nuclear" was not considered a
subject for comedy. Originally written as a drama, Kubrick decided that
too many of the ideas he had written were just too funny to be taken
seriously. The film's critical and commercial success allowed Kubrick
the financial and artistic freedom to work on any project he desired.
Around this time, Kubrick's focus diversified and he would always have
several projects in various stages of development: "Blue Moon" (a story
about Hollywood's first pornographic feature film), "Napoleon" (an epic
historical biography, abandoned after studio losses on similar
projects), "Wartime Lies" (based on the novel by Louis Begley), and
"Rhapsody" (a psycho-sexual thriller).
The next film he completed was a collaboration with sci-fi author
Arthur C. Clarke.
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
is hailed by many as the best ever made; an instant cult favorite, it
has set the standard and tone for many science fiction films that
followed. Kubrick followed this with
A Clockwork Orange (1971),
which rivaled Lolita (1962) for the
controversy it generated - this time not only for its portrayal of sex,
but also of violence.
Barry Lyndon (1975) would prove a
turning point in both his professional and private lives. His
unrelenting demands of commitment and perfection of cast and crew had
by now become legendary. Actors would be required to perform dozens of
takes with no breaks. Filming a story in Ireland involving military,
Kubrick received reports that the IRA had declared him a possible
target. Production was promptly moved out of the country, and Kubrick's
desire for privacy and security resulted in him being considered a
recluse ever since.
Having turned down directing a sequel to
The Exorcist (1973), Kubrick made
his own horror film:
The Shining (1980). Again, rumors
circulated of demands made upon actors and crew.
Stephen King (whose novel the film
was based upon) reportedly didn't like Kubrick's adaptation (indeed, he
would later write his own screenplay which was filmed as
The Shining (1997).)
Kubrick's subsequent work has been well spaced: it was seven years
before Full Metal Jacket (1987)
was released. By this time, Kubrick was married with children and had
extensively remodeled his house. Seen by one critic as the dark side to
the humanist story of Platoon (1986),
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
continued Kubrick's legacy of solid critical acclaim, and profit at the
box office.
In the 1990s, Kubrick began an on-again/off-again collaboration with
Brian Aldiss on a new science fiction film
called "Artificial Intelligence (AI)", but progress was very slow, and
was backgrounded until special effects technology was up to the
standard the Kubrick wanted.
Kubrick returned to his in-development projects, but encountered a
number of problems: "Napoleon" was completely dead, and "Wartime Lies"
(now called "The Aryan Papers") was abandoned when
Steven Spielberg announced he would
direct Schindler's List (1993),
which covered much of the same material.
While pre-production work on "AI" crawled along, Kubrick combined
"Rhapsody" and "Blue Movie" and officially announced his next project
as Eyes Wide Shut (1999), starring
the then-married Tom Cruise and
Nicole Kidman. After two years of
production under unprecedented security and privacy, the film was
released to a typically polarized critical and public reception;
Kubrick claimed it was his best film to date.
Special effects technology had matured rapidly in the meantime, and
Kubrick immediately began active work on
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001),
but tragically suffered a fatal heart attack in his sleep on March 7th,
1999.
After Kubrick's death, Spielberg revealed that the two of them were
friends that frequently communicated discreetly about the art of
filmmaking; both had a large degree of mutual respect for each other's
work. "AI" was frequently discussed; Kubrick even suggested that
Spielberg should direct it as it was more his type of project. Based on
this relationship, Spielberg took over as the film's director and
completed the last Kubrick project.
How much of Kubrick's vision remains in the finished project -- and
what he would think of the film as eventually released -- will be the
final great unanswerable mysteries in the life of this talented and
private filmmaker.
Director's Trademarks: A Guide to Stanley Kubrick's Films
Director's Trademarks: A Guide to Stanley Kubrick's Films
2001: A Space Odyssey and Eyes Wide Shut are just the beginning of Stanley Kubrick's legacy. Are you up to speed on the film icon's style?