Fest Track On Sirk TV Film Review: KUBRICK BY KUBRICK [Denver Film Festival 2020 - Virtual]

The idea of a perspective from a director comes down to the point at which one talks to him and what the precept is. Stanley Kubrick was largely known for his retreat from Hollywood which is not necessarily true. He just approached Hollywood the way he wanted to and he had the stature and the wield to do it. Now while this critic has spoken to many people over the years who worked with Kubrick including both Malcolm McDowell and Kubrick's longtime assistant to the director Leon Vitali, each has their own impression of the man as do many others. There are no new interviews but rather interviews from the time period the films were made. More importantly the film uses the construct of interviews film critic Michael Ciment did with the director sometime after "Full Metal Jacket" but before "Eyes Wide Shut". Granted we will never hear from his lips about the true nature of "Eyes Wide Shut" or others projects he was working on after that. Vitali spoke to me about "A.I.", "Napoleon" and even "The Aryan Papers". One of the interesting takeaways is Kubrick's fascination in terms of sociology with the Nazi regime. "The Aryan Papers" might have addressed it but from what I can remember from the Vitali conversation it came down to Spielberg (who was a close phone confidante of Kubrick). Kubrick thought that "Schindler's List" was a masterstroke and he didn't want to move at that point over maybe not necessarily a similar ground but something similar. But returning to Ciment's interviews, director Greg Monro uses them as a framing mechanism. And while the documentary just jumps from film to film depending on where the conversation went, it is still fascinating to hear Kubrick talk about war, human behavior and politics to a point. While it doesn't go infinitely deep. it is limited to the material at hand. That said, Monro frames the story in a recreation of the Starchild residence at the end of "2001" as a perception of Kubrick's mind. It is a methodical and basic construct but well formed in terms of the transition and basis of what Monro and, by extension, Kubrick is conveying. In addition, all of the film clips, especially ones from "Fear & Desire" to "Eyes Wide Shut" are included and The Kubrick Family (especially his wife Christiane) were consulted. The film doesn't stray from any controversy but doesn't hit it too dead on either. Either  way, any glimpse into the master done well is always welcome, especially one as specific as this. A-

By Tim Wassberg