Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures (2001)

The career and life of Stanley Kubrick is explored through pictures, clips from his films, his old home movies, comments from his colleagues and a narration by Tom Cruise.

Director:

Jan Harlan

Stars:

Katharina Kubrick, Malcolm McDowell, Stanley Kubrick

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Stanley Kubrick	...	Himself (archive footage)
Barbara Kroner	...	Herself, Stanley Kubrick's sister
Steven Marcus	...	Himself, professor, Stanley Kubrick's schoolfriend
Alexander Singer	...	Himself - Schoolfriend & Film Director (as Alex Singer)
Paul Mazursky	...	Himself
Irene Kane	...	Herself (as Chris Chase)
Sybil Taylor	...	Herself - Schoolfriend
James B. Harris	...	Himself
Marie Windsor	...	Herself
Richard Schickel	...	Himself
Christiane Kubrick	...	Herself
Peter Ustinov	...	Himself (as Sir Peter Ustinov)
Louis C. Blau	...	Himself
Anthony Frewin	...	Himself
Alex Cox	...	Himself

Storyline

Narrated by Tom Cruise, "Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures" goes through each one of his movies and talks to various participants about their memories of working with Kubrick. For those who know very little about Kubrick, the documentary is an excellent career overview. Kubrick film clips include "Fear and Desire," "Killer's Kiss," "The Killing," "Paths of Glory," "Spartacus," "Lolita," "Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb," "2001: A Space Odyssey," "A Clockwork Orange," "Barry Lyndon," "The Shining," "Full Metal Jacket" and "Eyes Wide Shut." Those appearing include: Arthur C. Clarke, Keir Dullea, Shelley Duvall, James B. Harris, Richard Schickel, Michael Herr, Nicole Kidman, Anya Kubrick, Christiane Kubrick, Gert Kubrick, Katharina Kubrick, Paul Mazursky, Jack Nicholson, Malcolm McDowell, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, Douglas Trumbull, Marie Windsor, Matthew Modine, Sydney Pollack and Peter Ustinov.

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Plot Keywords:

director name in title | stanley kubrick character | six word title | memory | narration | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 May 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Maailma Kubrickin silmin

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Warner Home Video

Technical Specs

Runtime:

142 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Shelley Duvall: [about working with Kubrick on The Shining] Did you see Groundhog Day?

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Alternate Versions

When this was shown in the UK, it was split into three parts and shown over 3 seperate nights. The first part focused on all of Kubrick's works up to and including 'Dr. Strangelove (1963)', BBC2 (the channel it was being shown on) then screened 'The Day Of The Fight (1951)'. The second part was shown the following night, which showed his works from '2001: A Space Oddysey (1968)' up to and including 'Barry Lyndon (1975)'. BBC2 then screened 'The Flying Padre (1951)' and finally aired the third and final installment, including all of his works throughout the 80s and 90s, on the third night.

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Connections

References Schindler's List (1993)

User Reviews

Terrific Overview

I only have two problems with this otherwise fantastic documentary: Tom Cruise's narration and the fact that EVERYONE he worked with (actors, producers, studio heads) just praised and praised the man as a "difficult but genius" force. From what I've read, there are probably several hundred people who hated him when he was alive. He was especially cruel to Shelley Duvall, and I've read interviews with her when Kubrick was ALIVE, who said making The Shining was the worst experience of her life. Now, in this documentary, she talks about how she has absolutely no regrets, because it made her "smarter." Maybe so. But more than likely there would have been a completely different attitude if this documentary had been made while he was still alive. And Tom Cruise's narration--I kept hearing "I worked with the greatest director of all time on his last movie, so there!" in his self-important narration. Malcolm McDowell would have been a more appropriate choice, in my opinion, as the humble narrator. But all in all, this is an excellent examination of a brilliant mind, a trade photographer who made arguably the greatest string of films in the history of cinema, from Lolita to The Shining (at least in my humble opinion).