How refreshing to hear an intelligence which is not fettered by the current obsession of people pleasing . I actually listened to every word rather than glazing over , so easy on YT to do that and click onto the next . Sincerity is always compelling, I like this man and respect his impeccable manners in humouring Mr Perruche .
It is so much nicer than the actors who practically suck the interviewers off just to have a good image, who speak all flowery about the themes and messages in the movie. I think the questions pissed McDowell off because of the simplicity of the questions: "Why do you think people didn't like the film?" "Why did Kubrick pick you?" "What's the message in this film?" Like read the book and watch the movie yourself!
I didn't see a problem with the interview at all, in fact, I think Malcom was thoughtful and spoke at length, freely and with ease about his film experiences. You can usually tell when an interview is going bad when the interviewee is NOT talking much, is combative, defensive and/or and gives only short, curt answers.
Interestingly enough I was linked to this from an interview with Tim Curry in 1975 about Rocky Horror. It struck me that Malcolm McDowell and Tim Curry are hugely talented actors whose careers have both been blessed and cursed by giving the definitive performance of an iconic film character.
A Clockwork Orange. Easily in my top ten favorite films of all time, fantastic book as well, although the endings are completely different, they are both great in their own right. But this is a rare occasion where I prefer the film over the book. Only a handful of those (where I like the film better than the book), and I believe 3 of them are Kubrick films, go figure. ACO, 2001, and Shining. Great interview, thanks for uploading it.
I always feel like instead of using a book as a guideline, Kubrick let's the book play a role in his film. Instead of adapting the book he let's the book be part of his world. I loved the Shining and am going to enjoy that read many more times this year!
The interviewer is terrible- he's prowling the thickets of McDowell's body of work and his personal background looking for connections that don't exist. No wonder McDowell doesn't come across as being particularly warm in this interview- the guy is being frankly insulted by someone who doesn't know the first thing about him.
It's funny that this has more views than the link in the title does, I think simply because the idea of Malcolm McDowell shouting out a RU-vid link in 1975 is both hilarious and a sign he was ahead of his time.
yeah he just seems so much like Alex in this interview. i think its weird Because he is normally cheerful, but its as if hes got osmehting dark inside him still in this interview. Very cool though, he says great insight....and yeah maybe its the withdrawl of frugs here. but who knows :) okay, still, love this man!!
i really do like hearing honesty on television, Malcolm is truthful in every single one of this words that trend seems to have died decades ago, and it's VERY pleasurable to jump back into a world in which is was accepted, if not the norm, and see the world in a whole different light how we got to where we are, is truly beyond my imagination
+drumstick74 Yeah, I don't think he's being very difficult here. He may have wanted to do something else that day, or was upset about something else that day and didn't feel like doing this. Maybe he didn't feel well that day. Who knows? I bet even he wouldn't remember. But, it speaks volumes that he wound up coming in and showing up anyway, especially if he had something else going on. And i don't think he seems too bad here. He's no barrel of laughs (like he often is), but he's being appropriately polite and answering the questions and so on.
He was a massive risk taker rolls in "If...", A Clockwork Orange, Caligula, Gangster No.1, I wish he had been given more roles to show his talents off.
+David Boris Fernandez I even saw McDowell himself say in an interview that he does a LOT of crap (his own words), and that, every once in a while, something spectacularly good comes along. He sees his career the same way we do, I think. At the same time, he doesn't do that whole pretentious "artiste" bit, either. He thinks that's annoying and dishonest. I always admire that. A down to Earth actor like McDowell or even Brando or even crazy as hell Klaus Kinski. Great actors, all. But all three denied being "artists", and simply state that it is a craft, it is a JOB, it is for work and money and a living. A very good living, in fact. But, they admit, every once in a while, something really special came out of the work. But, most of the time, they just went for the work and the money. McDowell says, "I'm not an artist. I am, at best, a craftsperson."
I had read "A Clockwork Orange" before I saw the film. They are 2 very distinct works of art with little overlap. Almost like a painting and a sculpture in terms of media. McDowell certainly made his career with the film. More power to him.
Part of the reason this film was banned in the 70's is because it might encourage people to actually do this! And the 70's were violent times with punks skins etc without that as well! Talented actor for sure, loved the film, but can see why it was banned.
I think the film had to contain violence the mind condemns in order to place the dilemma over whether mind control is truly ethical, even in circumstances where many would probably agree with the outcome (acting as an upstanding citizen). Alex, though his actions are deplorable, ceases to retain his humanity after his freedom of choice is relinquished and this is the question the film explores: whether this dehumanising consequence is justified. If Alex was an ideal citizen, the debate would not be opened because the audience would not be challenged as there would be no doubt that the conditioning was unethical.
When I was a small child, I watched a lot of very heavy films with my parents, e.g., Lord of the Flies, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, Alexander Nevsky, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, etc. I remember them all well, as well as how they impacted me. When I was five, we went to see "If." I remember feeling throughout that I was watching a very strange movie, and then came the ending. Even today, I still don't know what to make of it. If you haven't seen it, give it a youtube search.
+Peter Plasticon porron taste Everyone from low middle class up to rich goes to private schools in England. The state schools/public schools are of such low quality that only the very, very poor attend them. I have dozens of friends in Britain and the school system is the one thing they complain about.
people want actors to be the people they portray, or to have some deep insight into the character's larger meaning - actors aren't going to go there, usually - for that, see the director
i remember asking my lit professor if i cud do a paper on the book, she said no of course...on another note...mm is more delicious than a cherry cheesecake
Ah yes, the impressive patriarchy of jolly old England. American's are indeed uneducated, they did however discover electricity, Nuclear fission, originate air flight and the internet, to name a few! In the UK not so much.
Charles Klossner: What a stupid remark. The UK is responsible for a huge wealth of discoveries and inventions - far too many to start listing here, so I suggest you look it up. Nuclear fission was first discovered by German Otto Hahn, and the internet was invented by Englishman Tim Berners-Lee.
The movie about WW1 flying I saw at the cinema, Aces High, very good movie, I also liked the movie where he played HG Wells , who uses his own Victorian time machine to pursue Jack The Ripper into the present day! that was kinda fun!!
Many thanks for uploading this Colin! Re the movies MM was going on to make I presume the first was "Aces High" but any thoughts on what the Mike Hodges film might have been? From the timing of this interview it couldn't have been The Terminal Man - maybe an early version of Hodges later movie "I'll Sleep When I'm Dead" with MM as the Davey or Will character?
I've been enjoying your uploads here and have been working my way through them. I think Mark Caldwell comes across as being annoyed and is curt with Malcolm and I reckon he probably got a better interview because of Malcy's attitude. At least he didn't ask him about wanting to play "Clouseau"... I was in school in the 70's, we only got the teacher wheeling out the big trolley with the video recorder playing For schools and colleges... No ILEA Channel 7 for us, and this was an ILEA school.
Normally in interviews he does come across as very likable and extrovert, but this is indeed different. Did he ever give a reason why he didn't want to do it?
Saw a copy of the movie much like this in film studies at college Hazy,blurry,cut up,but cool to see If a feal orange is too much you can make a clockwork one,but it'll never be a real orange Juicy,ripe,and living like?
I don't know if he's withdrawing from anything in this video. His speech is a little slurry and his eyes look reddish in a B+W sense... Maybe he was in the pub and just didn't want to leave.
I remember crying and breathing heavily while Alex's parents said in the nicest terms that they didn't need or want him anymore. That just broke my heart
Yes, because of the way they changed him. It was just as cruel as when Alex committed crime. And then when he was basically brainwashed they treated him like a show pony up until he was released and wasnt given the chance to prove how he had "changed". Maybe he never really changed but I know I certainly felt bad for him by the end it's a very well made movie :)
Yes, he certainly does. Is more noticeable as normally he is quite jolly and life and soul of the party, though we can all have off days. I saw him once live as part of retrospective on Lindsey Anderson and he was very entertaining. Having said that I've seen some other early interviews with him and plenty of late ones, and he does seem to be generally a lot more cheery and forthcoming in the later ones.
