There are a lot of extras included with these DVDs compared to previous editions. Who now approves what gets added? Does WB say, "We’ve found these new items we’d like to include"? Or is the Kubrick camp responsible for licensing and creating this new material?
It is indeed the “Kubrick camp” which made a lot of material available. We always ask ourselves what Stanley would have wanted. Items that he himself had carefully preserved, like original conceptual drawings for 2001: A Space Odyssey, for example. I have no doubt that he would have approved the use of these wonderful designs at this point.
From what I have read Kubrick always seemed to be on top of technology. What were his thoughts on the DVD format, if any?
He would certainly have applauded the new technology, big plasma screens and HD DVDs. One can now get the full and intended impact of a film watching it at home, which was never possible with VHS tapes on old fashioned TV sets. Having said that, the problem of potential interruption and distraction remains, something that any director fears.
On a side note, are there any other Kubrick-related projects in the works fans can look forward to? Back when it was briefly leaked on the Internet, I had heard rumors of the Napoleon screenplay being released as a book.
You are right. TASCHEN publishers will bring out a comprehensive book on Stanley Kubrick’s Napoleon. Not just the script and treatment, which is not really revealing his true interest in person of Napoleon anyway, but also many pre-production details, designs etc. Stanley had 17000 images carefully collected, re-photographed on 35mm film and mounted in IBM cards for later sorting by clumsy machines. This was the state of the art in 1969. His library on the topic was huge and so was his knowledge.
Stanley Kubrick - Warner Home Video Directors Series includes: 2001: A Space Odyssey (Two-Disc Special Edition), A Clockwork Orange (Two-Disc Special Edition), The Shining (Two-Disc Special Edition), Full Metal Jacket (Deluxe Edition), Eyes Wide Shut (Two-Disc Special Edition), and Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures. The DVDs can be purchased individually and with the exception of A Life in Pictures are available in HD DVD and Blu-ray.
Article comments
1 - DukeDeMondo
Sir Bicho, excellent interview, beautifully written as ever. I'm torn on the matter of Kubrick. Times i think he's grossly overrated, and certainly two of my favorites - Full Metal Jacket and A Clockwork Orange - are really only Half Great films (explicitly in the case of Full Metal Jacket, you can pinpoint the precise moment when it turns from somethin extraordinary to somethin a bit less than that). But then there's Strangelove and The Shining which are, no doubt, flawless from start till end. I dunno. But that has no bearing on this article, which, as i mentioned, is a joy,
2 - El Bicho
Duke, you are too kind.
I know a lot of people only care for the first half of FMJ, and I have seen it more times than I remember, but the second half worked for me, maybe even more than the first, as it examined "The duality of man. The Jungian thing, sir."
With most Stanley's films, I see more in them with each viewing.
Now let's imagine for a moment a world where all films were a bit less than something extraordinary.
3 - Mark Saleski
i would like to point out that i saw A Clockword Orange in the movie theatre on a field trip when i was in 5th grade.
that may explain something about me, though i'm not too sure.