2001 - A Space Odyssey/A Clockwork Orange

Starring:Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Daniel Richter, Leonard Rossiter, Margaret Tyzack, Robert Beatty, Sean Sullivan, Douglas Rain, Frank Miller, Bill Weston, Ed Bishop, Glenn Beck, Alan Gifford, Ann Gillis, Edwina Carroll, Penny Brahms, Heather Downham, Mike Lovell, John Ashley (III)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
2001: A Space Odyssey
When Stanley Kubrick recruited Arthur C. Clarke to collaborate on "the proverbial intelligent science fiction film," it's a safe bet neither the maverick auteur nor the great science fiction writer knew they would virtually redefine the parameters of the cinema experience. A daring experiment in unconventional narrative inspired by Clarke's short story "The Sentinel," 2001 is a visual tone poem (barely 40 minutes of dialogue in a 139-minute film) that charts a phenomenal history of human evolution. From the dawn-of-man discovery of crude but deadly tools in the film's opening sequence to the journey of the spaceship Discovery and metaphysical birth of the "star child" at film's end, Kubrick's vision is meticulous and precise. In keeping with the director's underlying theme of dehumanization by technology, the notorious, seemingly omniscient computer HAL 9000 has more warmth and personality than the human astronauts it supposedly is serving. (The director also leaves the meaning of the black, rectangular alien monoliths open for discussion.) This theme, in part, is what makes 2001 a film like no other, though dated now that its postmillennial space exploration has proven optimistic compared to reality. Still, the film is timelessly provocative in its pioneering exploration of inner- and outer-space consciousness. With spectacular, painstakingly authentic special effects that have stood the test of time, Kubrick's film is nothing less than a cinematic milestone--puzzling, provocative, and perfect. --Jeff Shannon

Amazon.com

With the 1957 release of Paths of Glory, Stanley Kubrick confirmed his early promise and joined the ranks of world-class filmmakers. The age of the auteur had arrived, and Kubrick was a prime candidate for inclusion in the pantheon of directors later canonized by critic Andrew Sarris in his influential book The American Cinema. Ironically, this was also the period during which Kubrick left his native soil for permanent residence in England, and from that point forward, the Kubrick mystique inflated to legendary proportions. But if Kubrick was no longer bringing himself to the world, he was certainly bringing the world to his films. From the comfort of his rural England estate and locations never far from London, Kubrick would command cinematic odysseys to isolated Colorado (in The Shining), battle-ravaged Vietnam (Full Metal Jacket), upscale New York City (Eyes Wide Shut), and, of course, Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite (in 2001: A Space Odyssey).

The New Stanley Kubrick Collection includes all eight of Kubrick's films from Lolita on--a quarter-century of brilliant, challenging cinema. This second edition adds Eyes Wide Shut to the previous collection and remastered sound on five of the films plus a new anamorphic edition of 2001. Purists have complained that Kubrick's last three films have been released in full-screen format only; this was in compliance with Kubrick's wishes, and the films do not suffer unduly from full-screen formatting. This set also features a new full-length documentary made by longtime Kubrick assistant Jan Harlan, Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures. The diversity of Kubrick's work is truly astonishing, even though the director's technical precision and steely perspective on humanity may strike uninitiated viewers as cold and even misanthropic. His films almost always received mixed (and sometimes scathingly negative) reviews upon their release, only to benefit from glowing reassessment as they grew entrenched in the public consciousness. Here, in all their glory, are the collected films of a genuine master, ripe for study and appreciation for many years to come. --Jeff Shannon

Description

The new Stanley Kubrick Collection includes eight of the great director's masterpieces in stunning all-new digital transfers, restored picture and new digital audio. Titles include: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Barry Lyndon, A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacke

Customer Reviews:

Great Documentary.......2006-03-18

The documentary about Stanley Kubrick included in this collection ("Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures") makes it worth having. A truly great collection of movies, perfect for a Kubrick enthusiast looking to establish their DVD collection, or for people unsure about Kubrick to make them fans!

A box set featuring the films of the world's greatest director.......2005-07-03

The Stanley Kubrick Collection features 9 amazing DVD's, eight of them films. The films include Lolita, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, the documentary Stanley Kubrick: A Life In Pictures and more.
First of all, the sound/picture quality is amazing. If improves vastly over the sound/picture quality over the original, now out-of-print Stanley Kubrick Collection from 1999.
Also, the films are brilliant, except the vastly overrated A Clockwork Orange. For my review on this film, visit A Clockwork Orange on amazon.com
Every Kubrick fan should own this item!

The master of his domain.......2005-07-03

"Genius is the fire that lights itself." That could very well describe the mystique of, and the body of work from, Stanley Kubrick, arguably one of the greatest filmakers of the 20th century. This collection represents 8 of his works, from 'Lolita' to 'Eyes wide Shut', released after his sudden death in March 1999. Although other directors have a larger number of films to their credit, it only took 13 directions to go in for Kubrick to cement his legacy in the annals of movie history. From my perspective, two flicks stand out to define his greatness: 'Spartacus' (not included in this collection) and '2001: a Space Odyssey'. To do something no one else has done before, and for everyone to pull from that influence since, is a testament to his courage and perfectionism. He is listed in the Guiness book Of World Records as the director who demanded an astonishing 600-plus takes for one scene in 'The Shining'. Needless to say, Shelley Duvall was not happy after that week of shooting in the cold. But the actors who were fortunate enough to work on one of his films became major stars because of their apearances, from James Earl Jones in 'Dr. Strangelove', to Malcolm McDowell in 'A Clockwork Orange', to R. Lee Ermey and Vincent D'Onofrio in 'Full Metal Jacket', and Lelee Sobieski in 'Eyes Wide Shut'. Kirk Douglas was so fond of his talent, he made sure he got to work with him three times.

This is an excellent overview of a master artisan. Purchasing this along with the Criterion Collection version of 'Spartacus' will give you viewing enjoyment that will last a lifetime. Also check out 'A.I.: Artifical Intelligence', a Steven Spielberg product that was based on a screenplay given to him by Kubrick from ideas written in the books by Isaac Asimov. It was the last script Kubrick never finished making a movie of.

Much better set.......2005-05-30

Includes a couple more films and Vivian's feature-length documentary Stanley Kubrick: A Life In Pictures. One look at this set may be as a cash generator (after all, WB already released a Kubrick collection), but second look is Kubrick's artifact, an in-depth, beautifully remastered, feature-packed set. At last, gone are the days of Kubrick rolling in his grave from the original clunker set. He can now rest in peace, as his films are now preserved at highest imaginable quality with immersive 5.1 surround. Bless you, Vivian.

2001 was the only film in the original set to get the 5.1 treatment. Now, four other films (Barry Lyndon, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, and Full Metal Jacket) have been touched by the magic wand, and given a massive makeover, including-- you guessed it-- 5.1 surround. The features on the separate discs are essentially the same as the original set (we still get Vivian's Making of The Shining documentary, only with a restoration job done), but the real highlight is A Life In Pictures. After only seeing three of his films (2001, A Clockwork Orange, and Shining), I must agree that Kubrick is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, director(s) that ever lived.

Now WB has listened to the wailing Kubrick estate, and given his films the respect they deserve. Avoid the original clunker. Buy this one.

P.S. The films that are in fullscreen were shot that way, and the original aspect ratio is preserved according to Kubrick's wishes. So stop complaining about it!

Warner Brothers Cleans Up Its Act - Literally........2005-03-29

If you're reading this, chances are you've already seen many (if not all) of these movies and understand their significance in modern cinema. So, a review of the films themselves is fairly pointless. What I will discuss are the technical aspects of these DVDs as well as the bonus documentary "Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures." Like many of you, I bought some of the original Stanley Kubrick DVDs, and I can testify that they were shameful presentations of the director's work. "The Shining" had scratches, lines, and dirt all over the film. "A Clockwork Orange" looked woefully drab and washed out. But the worst offense was "Barry Lyndon." Not only did this picture suffer from print flaws, but the image, at one point, WOBBLED. Warner Brothers knew they had a turkey on their hands, so they discontinued these films and re-released them with digitally remastered picture and 5.1 sound. The improvements are noticeable, to say the least. The opening credits of "The Shining," which feature the steadicam roaming through the beautiful vistas of Colorado, is wonderfully crisp and clear. "Barry Lyndon," a visually stunning picture to begin with, is even more breathtaking with its sharp, rich colors. And "Full Metal Jacket," looks much better without the grain. Also, in place of the mono soundtrack that Kubrick allegedly preferred, we get remixed 5.1 audio ("Lolita" and "Dr. Strangelove," however, are still in mono). Simply put, Warners literally cleaned up its act by re-doing these films and presenting them the way they were meant to be shown. The fun doesn't stop there. Unlike the original Kubrick box set, this edition has a bonus documentary narrated by Tom Cruise: "Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures." This hugely entertaining film covers Kubrick's entire filmography, featuring interviews with crew members, friends, and cast including Malcolm McDowell, Jack Nicholson, Matthew Modine, Shelley Duvall, Nicole Kidman, Sidney Pollack, and Cruise himself. Woody Allen, Martin Scorcese, and Steven Speilberg also get to throw in their $.02. While they do praise Kubrick to high heaven, some predictably admit that he was very challenging to work with (he allegedly forced many of his actors to do dozens of takes while filming). Granted, this documentary doesn't exactly get us any closer to the director himself, but it does provide a fairly intimate and thorough look at his work. I've witnessed the price on this box set go down over the last couple years, so if you've been wanting to get your hands on it (and many movie buffs do), now is the time to do so.

2001 - A Space Odyssey/A Clockwork Orange

Average customer rating:

2001 - A Space Odyssey/A Clockwork Orange
Starring: Keir Dullea , Gary Lockwood , William Sylvester , Daniel Richter , and Leonard Rossiter
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

Classic Sci-Fi | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

Amazon.com

2001: A Space Odyssey
When Stanley Kubrick recruited Arthur C. Clarke to collaborate on "the proverbial intelligent science fiction film," it's a safe bet neither the maverick auteur nor the great science fiction writer knew they would virtually redefine the parameters of the cinema experience. A daring experiment in unconventional narrative inspired by Clarke's short story "The Sentinel," 2001 is a visual tone poem (barely 40 minutes of dialogue in a 139-minute film) that charts a phenomenal history of human evolution. From the dawn-of-man discovery of crude but deadly tools in the film's opening sequence to the journey of the spaceship Discovery and metaphysical birth of the "star child" at film's end, Kubrick's vision is meticulous and precise. In keeping with the director's underlying theme of dehumanization by technology, the notorious, seemingly omniscient computer HAL 9000 has more warmth and personality than the human astronauts it supposedly is serving. (The director also leaves the meaning of the black, rectangular alien monoliths open for discussion.) This theme, in part, is what makes 2001 a film like no other, though dated now that its postmillennial space exploration has proven optimistic compared to reality. Still, the film is timelessly provocative in its pioneering exploration of inner- and outer-space consciousness. With spectacular, painstakingly authentic special effects that have stood the test of time, Kubrick's film is nothing less than a cinematic milestone--puzzling, provocative, and perfect. --Jeff Shannon

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