Director Stanley Kubrick has drawn a great film from an equally great novel, and such book-to-movie transformations are often not nearly so successful. James Mason, who is one of the best actors of the 20th century, is a marvel in the role of the perverse professor Humbert Humbert. Shelley Winters, whose cloying qualities often grate on the nerves, is perfect as the neurotic, delusional mother whose daughter is the object of Humbert's obsession. Sue Lyon, who was about 16 at the time she played Lolita, delivers an unforgettable performance as the sexy little nymph who turns into the most ordinary of women. "Lolita" is one of those stories (like "The War of the Roses") that takes obsessive irrational behavior to its logical conclusion in a surreal fashion. Although there are comical moments, this is a very sad film, and the movie's theme song is somehow as vapid yet unforgettable as Lolita's brain.
Review of Lolita
