The_Film_That_Changed_My_Life

A Clockwork Orange
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watch that you could filter out with reverb. There are a number of ways to
solve that problem. People tell those kinds of stories about Kubrick.
One of the most famous examples is Eyes Wide Shut. The production
for that went so long that they had to recast Harvey Keitel’s role. Sydney
Pollack had to come in and do it. This film, A Clockwork Orange,
was scheduled for ten weeks and he shot it over eight months. He was
a real obsessive guy, something that would not be tolerated in modern
Hollywood.
Dahl: That’s the unique thing about him. He had this reputation and this
ability to make films exactly the way he wanted, which is very rare.
How did your perception of the film change over time with subsequent
viewings?
Dahl: This is a movie I probably watched ten times. The first few times I
saw this, I had to see it on film. It wasn’t until the early ’80s that videotape
decks came in and you could actually rent any movie you wanted. It struck
me when I was watching it this week how powerful some of it is and, at the
same time, some of it feels a little amateurish. Let me take that back. You
can see a guy having fun making this movie, almost like a student film, in a
way. Maybe it’s because I related to it as a student filmmaker, and I so tried
to imitate this movie in my student films. Certainly every movie I made has
something from A Clockwork Orange in it. I guess I find it still incredibly
entertaining and still relevant. I guess it moved along with me and I still find
it to be a compelling film.