Lolita (1962)
in Movies ·
Just finished watching Kubrick's film...
In my view, both adaptations really just boil down to a matter of perspective—specifically, how the director approaches the subject matter... Kubrick's film serves as a scathing condemnation of pedophilia and the society that enables it (Humbert is portrayed as something almost monstrous), whereas Lyne's version actually focuses on a romantic connection where both parties entered into it consciously. Of course, Lyne doesn't condone pedophilia, he just doesn't even bother to address it at all.
And yes—I agree that you can't compare a movie to a book, but I have to say that neither film even comes close to the novel... not in terms of plot, nor tone, nor atmosphere... they’re only "good" if you view them as entirely standalone works. There is a mountain of material in the book that both directors left out, things that could have been utilized perfectly to flesh out the story... and as for Nabokov's own stance on the issue he's writing about... well, I'd say he sits somewhere in the middle—if nothing else, he avoids taking extreme positions.
By the way, the absolute highlight of Kubrick's Lolita is that scene where Humbert tries to talk to Lolita about their issues, explaining why he's jealous and how Beardsley is depressing him and all that, while she's barely listening and just blowing bubbles, and then he snaps and yells: Stop doing that!, which just completely stresses her out... honestly, pure genius!👍
In my view, both adaptations really just boil down to a matter of perspective—specifically, how the director approaches the subject matter... Kubrick's film serves as a scathing condemnation of pedophilia and the society that enables it (Humbert is portrayed as something almost monstrous), whereas Lyne's version actually focuses on a romantic connection where both parties entered into it consciously. Of course, Lyne doesn't condone pedophilia, he just doesn't even bother to address it at all.
And yes—I agree that you can't compare a movie to a book, but I have to say that neither film even comes close to the novel... not in terms of plot, nor tone, nor atmosphere... they’re only "good" if you view them as entirely standalone works. There is a mountain of material in the book that both directors left out, things that could have been utilized perfectly to flesh out the story... and as for Nabokov's own stance on the issue he's writing about... well, I'd say he sits somewhere in the middle—if nothing else, he avoids taking extreme positions.
By the way, the absolute highlight of Kubrick's Lolita is that scene where Humbert tries to talk to Lolita about their issues, explaining why he's jealous and how Beardsley is depressing him and all that, while she's barely listening and just blowing bubbles, and then he snaps and yells: Stop doing that!, which just completely stresses her out... honestly, pure genius!👍