Lolita
1962
Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of Vladimir Nabokov's controversial LOLITA is a wicked satire of sexual obsession, sadomasochism, and fetishism. When mild-mannered professor Humbert Humbert (James Mason) arrives in the small town of Ramsdale, New Hampshire, he is immediately set upon by his landlady, Charlotte Haze (Shelley .. Read more
| Starring | James Mason, Shelley Winters, Sue Lyon, Gary Cockrell |
|---|---|
| Director | Stanley Kubrick |
| Genres | Drama |
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Lolita
Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of Vladimir Nabokov's controversial LOLITA is a wicked satire of sexual obsession, sadomasochism, and fetishism. When mild-mannered professor Humbert Humbert (James Mason) arrives in the small town of Ramsdale, New Hampshire, he is immediately set upon by his landlady, Charlotte Haze (Shelley Winters), and her adolescent daughter, Lolita (Sue Lyon). Although Humbert gets involved with Charlotte, it is Lolita with whom he becomes obsessed. When Charlotte sends her daughter away to summer camp (the aptly named Camp Climax), Humbert becomes consumed with jealousy. When he finally takes Lolita out of camp and heads out alone with her, he is pestered along the way by Clare Quilty (played magnificently by Peter Sellers), who threatens to expose him. But nothing can break the hold Lolita has over Humbert.
From the opening credits sequence--a close-up of a man's hand (with a wedding ring) carefully polishing a young girl's toenails--Kubrick's LOLITA burns with sexual energy that is biting, ironic, and darkly comic as it follows the debasement of an intelligent, worldly man in a series of carefully choreographed long takes that boils over with psychosexual tension. Although little physical contact is shown, Kubrick hints at it beautifully, especially in the drive-in scene in which both Charlotte and Lolita grab on to Humbert's hands. And yet given the serious nature of the subject matter, Kubrick pauses long enough to include a riotous slapstick scene of Humbert and a bellhop struggling over a cot as Lolita sleeps quietly on the bed, as well as Quilty playing Ping-Pong with a seemingly endless supply of balls. Stanley Kubrick's highly controversial masterwork is a fascinating look at pedophilia and sexual taboos that lead to obsession and murder.
| Starring | James Mason, Shelley Winters, Sue Lyon, Gary Cockrell, Diana Decker, Lois Maxwell |
|---|---|
| Director | Stanley Kubrick |
| Studio | WARNER HOME VIDEO |
| Run time | DVD: 2 hrs 27 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Drama |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Dubbed | French, Italian |
| Hearing-impaired | English, Italian |
| Subtitles | DVD: Arabic, Bulgarian, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish |
| Released | DVD: 10 Sep 2001 Production year: 1962 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (2)
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“How did they ever make a film of Lolita?” asked the posters for this brilliant Stanley Kubrick film. Well, in Vladimir Nabokov's adaptation of his own famous novel about the professor and the 12-year-old girl, there are added layers of black comedy and only slight compromise: James Mason seems to love Sue Lyon rather than lust after her, and Lolita's age is increased to 15. As time goes by, Lolita gets better and funnier. Shelley Winters's hilarious and sad portrayal of Lolita's mother is American momism incarnate, while Peter Sellers as Clare Quilty is like a creepy chameleon. Only one quibble: for economic and censorship reasons the picture was made in England, and because of this Nabokov's nightmare vision of urban America and its seedy motels is reduced to obvious back projection and even more obvious Elstree locations. This apart, a perfect movie that gets better as time goes by.
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Less genuinely ecstatic in its portrait of paedophiliac obsession than Nabokov's novel - Kubrick is too cold and... read more on Time Out
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Most helpful member's review
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16 out of 20 people found this review helpful
Oh Dear!
Oh dear! What an awful film! first of all, its in black and white, the acting is terrible & the characters totally unconvincing - in fact, my boyfriend and I turned it off after 30 gruelling minutes. I love the book Lolita, its a work of art and I really enjoyed the Adrian Lyne version of film with Jeremy Irons, Melanie Griffith & Dominique Swain who is just PERFECT for the part. Honestly, dont even bother with this, if you have read the book then the Adrian Lyne version will satisfy you. They couldnt have picked a better actress to play Lolita
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Most recent members' review
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5 out of 5 people found this review helpful
[Highly rated reviewer]
Very funny, dark and desperate
Stanley Kubrick film adaptation from 1960, starring James Mason and Peter Sellers. The marketing campaign and the original theatrical trailer both state it’s a miracle the film got made. After watching Lolita, I can see why. It’s about James Mason’s infatuation and subsequent love affair with his underage step daughter, Lolita, played by newcomer Sue Lyon. Because of the attitudes at the time, and even still today, Mason and Lyon are never shown consummating their love, or even showing any physical affection for each other. Because of this, it’s not entirely clear the nature of their relationship, however, this ambivalence lends itself to the film. This sounds like a dark picture with some quite nasty themes; however, it is more of a comedy, especially the first half. The second, although full of laughs, does get darker and more desperate. The scene that really stayed with me was when James Mason refuses the advances of his landlady, played brilliantly by Shelly Winters; she then drifts into a monologue about loneliness and desperation, which she shouts at the top of her voice. Very powerful and compelling viewing. My only problem with this great film is Peter Sellers, a playwright who is also infatuated with Lolita. Kubrick seems to have given him too much freedom. His performance is way too over the top and would have benefited from Kubrick reining him in.
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News and features
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Wood's Lolita obsession leads to glasses collection
- 09 Aug 2009
Actress Evan Rachel Wood is so obsessed with Vladimir Nabokov's controversial novel Lolita she has a huge collection of heart-shaped sunglasses, just like the ones the author's heroine, an alluring teen temptress, wears. Her literary love also inspired ex-lover Marilyn Manson, who penned the song Heart-Shaped Glasses in tribute to his girlfriend. She says, "My apartment is covered with different kinds of heart-shaped glasses. My goal was to bring them back." Read more
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