In Memoriam: Stanley Kubrick

On what would have been his 83rd birthday, we're celebrating the memory of the famous film director, Stanley Kubrick. Over the course of a nearly fifty year career, Kubrick stamped a name for himself in Hollywood lore, crafting some of the most memorable and instantly recognizable films in cinematic history. His work garnered him thirteen Academy Award nominations, including four Best Director nominations and five nominations for work with both original and adapted screenplays. Strangely enough, however, his only Oscar win came in the form of a statuette for Best Special Visual Effects for the 1968 film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, which is probably a tad bit blasphemous, to be sure. Still, there's no denying the Kubrick stamp that he placed on all his films. There's something about his work that leaves you a little bit mesmerized, and that's what makes the appeal all the more lasting.

So, like I normally do with my general "birthday" posts, I'm listing my favorite Kubrick films. I've given a clip from each particular film for your viewing pleasure, so I hope you enjoy them. If you haven't had an opportunity to take in Kubrick's films, I suggest you give them a chance. They're going to leave you scratching your head a little bit, but that's what makes them all the more brilliant. The world cannot - and hopefully will not - ever forget the impact Kubrick had on film history.

5. The Shining
1980


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4. Full Metal Jacket
1987


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3. A Clockwork Orange
1971


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2. 2001: A Space Odyssey
1968


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1. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb
1964


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I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes from Kubrick himself, one I think personifies his films completely:

"A film is - or should be - more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what's behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later."