(Movie and Book spoilers ahead)
In the book, Alex goes to the music store where he lures two 10 year-olds to him bedroom, and them abuses them. Disgusting.
In the movie, he seduces two young ladies and has consensual sex with them. Everybody seemed to have fun, he was not even rough. Kudos to him.
I understand pedophilia might be too heavy for the screen, but what was the point of showing that scene, then? It looked out of character and gratuitous.
It still shows his constant, id-driven behaviour. I think the film seems to imply that they're not of-age, either, doesn't it? It's been awhile since I've seen the film, but I thought the implication was that the girls were teenagers, possibly even young/early teens.
shareYeah, something like this. Alex is a creature that's completely driven by what you could call primal impulses, if that makes sense. The adrenalin rush of violence. The physical pleasure of sex.
Hard to say whether the girls were underage or not. They looked like older teenagers to me. Physically developed. If they were underage, it wasn't by much.
Yes they don't look underage but I agree with the OP and Ace, the movie implies they were too young and he was luring them with his BS tactics.
I also agree with the OP that it's a bit out of character and doesn't add much.
I guess that in 1971 such a behavior was seen as shocking or excessive, but by today standards a young man that seduces two willing young women to have casual sex is not seen as anything but cool.
Since they wanted to avoid pedophilia maybe he should have kidnapped them, or used some violence, at least in the bedroom...
How did the movie imply any of that?
shareThe way he talks to them n the way they talk.
Typical Kubrick moralism, sex is man fucking the poor woman, not equal fucking.
How were they talking that implied they were too young?
shareThe "girls" were not underaged at all. They looked like 20 years old women. Anyway, if Alex is a teenager, nothing is wrong if he sleeps with girls of his age.
The scene is to show how much of an ascendency Alex has on people. A guy enters a shop, talks 2 minutes to 2 beautiful women and they end up 10 minutes later in a three some ... how many people did that ? Anyone here did that ? Alex is like a Casanova. it's meant for that.
Remember, Alex and his droogs are also supposed to be teenagers despite being played by people who were clearly adults. So Alex having consenting sex with teens isn't all that bad.
shareYeah, it's not a crime on the level of his gang violence and rape in other scenes, but I still think it's there to highlight his hedonism, devil-may-care attitude, and breakneck pace lifestyle.
shareSure, it does highlight that. I was just referring to the age of the girls as it seems a lot of people forget Alex is a teenager (not helped by Malcolm McDowell looking strangely wrinkly even as a 20-something adult).
shareBook has him at 15, I think. But, the book has the girls as 10ish, so who knows what he's supposed to be in the film.
shareIn the film, having him and the Droogies as young adult males works for its time as the 60s had come to an end and there was a malaise in youth culture. ACWO kinda plays on that malaise as it presents a bleaker, dystopian future where young people are no longer propagators of future generations but dysfunctional wardens of the state while the older generation withers away yearning for the good 'ol days.
It's an interesting contrast compared to today's world where there's a tug of war between extreme ideologies dominating the dialogue when it comes to social issues.
Yeah, I tend to think of younger generations as the ones really invested in society. The nadsats and droogs of ACWO are disaffected to the point of violence and anarchy. Plenty of violence among youth, but they seem to be hellbent on making a difference, not on a bit of the old ultraviolence for its own sake.
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