I recently released a review of this film which covered much of what I have to say about this film within this topic. Despite that, this film remains one of the most emotionally sapping and pathetic spectacles I have ever seen, and probably ever will see. Harvey Keitel gives one of the most empty and desperate performances, I can see the sanity leaking from his ears in every single scene. There isn't much to say here, other than the final Act of this film will leave you speechless.
6. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
Stanely Kubrick's masterpiece is one of the most complex and though provoking films ever made. It also stands alongside M as a contender for being my favourite film on this entire list, regardless of the subject of this list. However, this film is not ranked this high for that reason alone. It is here for the terrifying and utterly insane society it portrays, and how it parallels our own. In many ways, it resembles Battle Royale, using a dystopian setting to show the depraved insanity of our own society and commenting on some of the darker paths we have already begun to walk down. However this film strikes a closer chord than Battle Royale, drawing more believable parallels and showing a society that is not a-moral, only having a recognisable twisted set of ethics.
Alex himself is also a joyfully unsympathetic character, how is able to seduce the audience in a perverse way despite his own insane and monstrous behaviour. In that way, you could argue that A Clockwork Orange actually succeeds in dragging the viewer into a temporary state of insanity themsleves, forcing them to relate to characters who are seemingly unrelatable. Such is the genius of Kubrick.
5. Taxi Driver (1976)
Another Scorsese/De Niro team-up, this one perhaps being their most lauded collaboration ever. Travis Bickle represents isolation and the madness it can bring in the purest sense it has ever been shown. The film taps into so many causes, symptoms and effects of the alienation experienced by Bickle, and due to this shear detail, it would not be unreasonable to call this one of the all-time greatest character studies. Sadly, a little like Bad Lieutenant, since the main source of insanity, and the primary focus of the entire film, is the main character. Therefore, I do not feel like I can go into too much analysis and only recommend you see this film for yourself.
By Jack D. Phillips
A Zoom Film Review
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