Stanley Kubrick

A major film director can turn out a film every two years, provided he works steady and can get the studio backing. Stanley Kubrick has commanded our interest since 1956's The Killing; and in the forty years since then, he has turned out only ten films. And apart from two war films, Paths of Glory and Full Metal Jacket, each of these films is utterly unique. Two are science fiction; one awe-inspiring and optimistic, the other horrifying and deeply cynical about the human condition. There's an historical epic done within the Hollywood system (which Kubrick has disowned), and a deliberately-paced tale of a failed rake of the 18th century. And then there's Lolita, Dr. Strangelove, and The Shining...