Lolita
1962
How did they make a movie out of Lolita? teased the print ads of this Stanley Kubrick production. The answer: by adding three years to the title character's age. The original Vladimir Nabokov novel caused no end of scandal by detailing the romance between a middle-aged intellectual and a 12-year-old nymphet. The affair is .. Read more
| Starring | James Mason, Shelley Winters, Sue Lyon, Gary Cockrell |
|---|---|
| Director | Stanley Kubrick |
| Genres | Drama |
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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 members' reviews (3)
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9 out of 10 people found this review helpful
Very boring
I was expecting a very different film to this. I was bored to tears waiting for some action. Why others found it good I will never understand
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Most recent members' reviews (2)
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2 out of 3 people found this review helpful
Unremarkable
Perhaps it was a mistake to see the version with Irons first, as it seems the script was hardly different (although the treatment of quilty's character are... more
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9 out of 10 people found this review helpful
Very boring
I was expecting a very different film to this. I was bored to tears waiting for some action. Why others found it good I will never understand
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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’... more
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4 out of 5 people found this review helpful
Excellent combination
A brilliant performance from James Mason and Peter Sellers, brought together by the genius of Kubrick. A true classic.
Not much is wrong with this ... more -
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful
[Highly rated reviewer]
Worth it for Mason and Sellers alone!
Mason and Sellers are superb in this pic of an older mans unrequitted love for a teenager.This subject matter is less of an issue in our more liberated , ... more
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- Micthetic
- Posted 25 Apr 2005 20:24
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
Flawed Adaptation
Overlong and plodding adaptation of the Vladimir Nabokov novel. James Mason is compelling but too sympathetic as Humbert Humbert. Shelley Winters as Lo's ... more
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2 out of 3 people found this review helpful
Unremarkable
Perhaps it was a mistake to see the version with Irons first, as it seems the script was hardly different (although the treatment of quilty's character are... more
Critics' reviews (2)
-
“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.
-
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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