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Rating: My first review. I begin with the unforgettable master Stanley Kubrick's first feature film.
For many, Kubrick was the greatest director the world of cinema has ever known. A heavy statement, difficult for me to say whether one can agree or not, given the fact that there have been many great directors.
Undeniably, however, it's undeniable that Kubrick is a monument in the world of cinema. Famous for his on-set excesses, it took months to shoot a scene, and the master more or less produced a film every ten years. Indeed, his production is not vast, but each of his works is to be considered an absolute milestone, an absolute masterpiece. While always maintaining a recognizable style that went well beyond technical perfection, Kubrick each time proposed a different genre, from noir to drama, from war to science fiction, from historical to costume film, from horror to erotic... he always amazed us with the greatness of his genius.
Perhaps the theme dearest to the master was precisely that addressed in his first work, the theme of war. In fact, there are three works that Kubrick dedicated to war, always in a different and always perfect manner.
In this first work, Kubrick seems unwilling to focus on the historical aspect of a certain war, but rather on the psychological side of those who go to fight a war. Soldiers lost from all points of view, lost in the place they find themselves, lost in their psyche now damaged by the madness and horrors of war. The film features several scenes worth remembering, the terrified look of the girl tied up with the soldiers' own belts, one of the soldiers who completely out of his mind disappears among the trees of the forest and the mist along with his macabre and insane laughter. Naturally, I will stop here telling the scenes because I can realize that perhaps this first work is among the least known and the least seen of the master, and therefore I don't want to spoil anything for those who intend to see the film.
A film that, among other things, we also risked never seeing, as in past years it was considered lost. Fortunately, the work was then found and restored. It is also said that Kubrick was not at all satisfied with this first work of his, while other cinema experts, after viewing the young Kubrick's film, said that the film would be remembered over time, as it presents scenes, in particular I repeat the entire moment of the girl tied up and then killed as a dramatic, disturbing, even mysterious moment, shot with absolute mastery and perfection. With this first work, Kubrick demonstrated that he already had an extraordinary talent.
"Pain is a good teacher," Kubrick said in an interview. He was not exactly satisfied, on the other hand, it's true that the film is very well made, but going forward over the years, Kubrick would gift us with works so grandiose that logically this first work could also seem endearing. I repeat, when talking about a director like Kubrick, we must necessarily realize that we are dealing with cinema that aims to be pure art; the master's logic was precisely this, making art rather than entertainment. Cinema made by those who consider cinema art, to put it simply.
Undoubtedly, we can also speak of it as an experimental work. On closely watching the film, I often had this impression, the fact of being catapulted into a dimension that seems to know no time, a war that is ultimately undefined and indefinable, madness that reigns supreme. In short, I found these aspects very interesting, leading me to hypothesize that Kubrick's first film is not so much a film about war but a film about the psyche. Naturally, my personal opinion.
I invite all lovers of great cinema to watch the master's first work very carefully. I believe it will quite disconcert the viewer. Absolutely must-see.
VinnySparrow
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