Stanley Kubrick's Controversial '70s Sci-Fi Movie Is Streaming On HBO Max

When you think of Stanley Kubrick you might think of some of his biggest successes, such as "The Shining" or "2001: A Space Odyssey," which George Lucas has even called sci-fi's ultimate movie. However, the director and writer has made far more than just those over the years. For example, there's "A Clockwork Orange," which boasts a committed cult following. If you've never seen Kubrick's ultra-violent classic, or if you're just curious to see how it holds up after more than 50 years, the movie is now available to stream on HBO Max. 

Adapted from a 1962 novel by Anthony Burgess, "A Clockwork Orange" follows an unhinged young man named Alex DeLarge (Malcom McDowell). The leader of a gang, Alex enjoys dishing out violence while listening to Beethoven. However, he soon finds himself at the center of an experimental treatment designed to suppress his violent impulses.

It's an interesting exploration of violence and a person's free will, as well as the overall research of the time concerning behavioral psychology. The story is woven fantastically against a very dystopian backdrop. However, the overall premise of the movie, as well as the violence entailed within that premise, made "A Clockwork Orange" a hard sell for moviegoers in the early 1970s. In fact, the ultra-violence within the movie even helped lead to it being banned in several countries.

Kubrick's film is far from the only movie ever banned somewhere, of course. The cult classic anime "Akira" was banned in Russia for being too dark and violent — among other reasons. The level of violence on display in "A Clockwork Orange" makes it pretty easy to see why some countries might have banned the film after its original release. 

The movie features quite a few adult themes and elements, including assault, sexual violence, and nudity — all of which contributed to the controversy surrounding it. Because of how shocking much of the content was, several countries banned the film, including Spain, Brazil, and South Africa. Others, like Argentina, required cuts to be made to the movie before it was allowed to air. Ireland completely rejected it. The movie even found itself effectively banned in Britain, the country that the film takes place in. However, the circumstances there were a bit different than in other countries.

Instead of being outright banned by British censors, Britain actually approved showings of the uncut version of "A Clockwork Orange." However, after some news reports began to link the movie to alleged copycat crimes that were popping up around the country, Kubrick and his family began to receive threats. This led the director to explicitly ask Warner Bros. to pull the movie from circulation in Britain. Of course, many of these bans and restrictions were eventually lifted over the decades, with the movie becoming widely available again in places where audiences once had no legal way to watch it.

Despite the controversies surrounding "A Clockwork Orange" at the time of its release, the film is often cited as one of Kubrick's best films by cinephiles and sports an 8.2 rating on IMDB. The cinematography itself is very striking — so much that it remains one of the best movies to watch on your new 4K TV if you want to really show off the format's quality. 

Over the years the movie has continued to find new life across various streaming services. Before its newest run on HBO Max, "A Clockwork Orange" has also been available to Netflix subscribers in the past.

The classic has even received the 4K treatment, with some Redditors saying that it's a considerable step up from the Blu-ray release, and that it's "as good as its ever going to look." You can stream "A Clockwork Orange" on HBO Max now.