Stanley Kubrick's Fear & Desire

I have mixed feelings about this release. The quality and presentation are great, but I know that Kubrick did what he could to make sure no one could ever watch this early film of his, and I can see why. This is definitely a more inexperienced Kubrick. Still, an inexperienced Kubrick is more sophisticated/competent than many other a creative person. It feels a little strange to me to have this released and to watch it knowing that it would have been against his wishes if he were alive.As far as the extras go, we’ve got one of Kubrick’s documentaries which is only useful to satisfy the curiosity of a Kubrick fan, and that’s pretty much it. I do wish that the other documentary he filmed could have been included for completionism sake, and that combined with the awkwardness of this being a “forbidden” movie is why I take 1 star away. It’s necessary to complete your Kubrick collection, and that’s basically the only reason I would recommend it. If you’re not a Kubrick collector then it really isn’t worth it

Whether you were inclined or disinclined to cozy to director Stanley Kubrick there is no denying that he was a unique visionary artist who was unimatable. The common thread I see in these reviews is that "Fear and Desire" is a work of a novice director on a low budget. I will agree that Kubrick had limited resources but I would argue that he made the most of what little was made available to him. The theme of the brutality of war and the dehumanizing effects it has in those engaged in it comes across loud and clear and this is a piece with "Paths of Glory" and "Full Metal Jacket" where budgets weren't as much of a concern. It's pretty daring when you consider that the U.S. had only been removed from World War II a scant eight years and were now engaged in the Cold War. If there is any flaw here it may be in the script by Howard Sackler which is a bit heavy handed. Kubrick compensates, however, by projecting stark images on the screen that sear themselves to your soul. The story here is of two unidentified combatants one being a group of soldiers crashlanded in enemy territory trying to claw there way back to their home base. The scene where the group slaughter their opposites while they are consuming cold stew will leave your draw drop. Another powerful scene is when the men kidnap and tie a peasant girl to a tree and leave a green private to guard her while they look for a raft they misplaced. The private played by Paul Mazursky, who would later become a renowned director in his own right, exhorts the girl to forgive him as he slowly descends into madness. I also like the conceit that the actors who play the lieutenant and private from one side play the general and captain from the other side and voice the same reservations about the toll war takes on man's psyche. I don't know if casting the same actors was an artistic stroke of genius or a budgetary constraint but it works. It would be interesting if you screened this film for an audience who didn't know it was a work of Kubrick's and what their reaction would be. Also included on this disc is "The Seafarers", a promotional film for the International Seafarers Union that Kubrick was hired to direct. There is nothing artistic about this exercise other than as a tool to attract dues paying members to the union. For Kubrick fans the only nuggets left out there are two short subjects he made prior to this film, "The Day of the Fight" and "The Flying Padre".

Finally the long forgotten first film by the legendary director Stanley Kubrick has been released on a home video format for the first time and it is truly a sight to behold. There was believe it or not a time when Stanley Kubrick wasn't one of the biggest names in film history, Yes, that's right, Stanley Kubrick, a man who's Career in the industry has no equal started out as a nobody who had to raise funds from family and friends to start production on what would be his first full motion picture, and like most directorial debuts, it was a box office failure, even after having been given high praise by some notable critics at the time, audiences just didn't care for it. It's been said many times that Kubrick was before his time, and the same can be said about this film. At a mere 60 minute's, it is by far Kubrick's shortest movie, and lest polished, but contained in it's short run time are the ideas that gave birth to the style of film making that Kubrick continued to used and hone throughout the remainder of his career. My personal thought's about the film the first time i watched it(this was many years ago) were that of the audiences, i didn't see anything of the man that Hollywood considered one of it's best. Now Many years latter and after several reviewing's i've realized that i was so so wrong. It's easily understandable for a person to say that a older low budget film like this sucks when they've seen films like 2001: A Space Odyssey, you have to look at this film a little more deeply to see the true skill of it's creator at work. Throughout the rest of his life Kubrick shunned this film, was embarrassed by it, he even tried buying up as many original film prints as he could find, with the plan of preventing it from ever being seen again. Thankfully he didn't get them all, and now it has been beautifully restored in high definition and released for the world to enjoy and to see first hand how one of the greatest directors of all time got his start. If you are a Stanley Kubrick fan then you must own this film, cherish it, and be happy it still exists.

It came in good condition.

I wouldn't be writing this if I wasn't a huge Kubrick fan so let's get that out of the way. I read somewhere that later in life he was embarrassed by this film and hoped it would never be resurrected. His next three efforts, the film noirs "Killer's Kiss" and "The Killing" and the more fully realized war film, the classic "Paths of Glory" are each in their own way excellent films well worth searching out. Others have written that some of the themes in "Glory" have their roots in this film ... I'm not so sure. Think of this film, considered his first feature (although only 60 minutes viewing time) as an important early step in his development as a film maker. He was already an accomplished still photographer and this film marks his first foray into "motion" pictures. IMO, the stunning B&W photography is the only redeeming element of the film. The plot has been described as being deeply "existential" ... that may be, but I personally prefer something more engaging. Made only seven years after WWII which to some degree no doubt explains the somber, introspective mood of the film. I did not connect emotionally with any of the characters, did not like either the musical score or (especially) the rather morose voice-over. In summary, for even the most ardent Kubrick fans, this is not required viewing. My advice, skip this one and dig out your copy of "Dr. Strangelove" or "A Clockwork Orange" or "The Shining" or ...well, you get the idea. The man produced brilliant films ... this is not one of them.

oonly in german!

This film was broadcast recently on the Talking Pictures TV channel in the UK and the film quality was good. The film quality on the DVD however was very poor - more consistent with being transferred to DVD from an ancient video without being remastered in any way. I have returned the DVD and have arranged a refund. The seller promised to investigate the issue with their supplier but I've heard nothing yet.

Dieser Film war Stanley Kubricks erste Fingerübung für einen Spielfilm. Mit einem kleinen bescheidenen Budget, größtenteils aus eigener Tasche finanziert, hielt Stanley Kubrick sein erstes Werk für zu prätentiös. Er experimentierte hier noch mit der Kamera- und der Schnitttechnik. Dieser Versuch sollte sich für seine weiteren Werke bezahlt machen. Denn alles, was Stanley Kubrick berühmt machte, ist hier schon voll und ganz zu erkennen. Eigene stilbildende Schnitttechnik, einfallsreiche Kameraeinstellungen und gut bis sehr gut ausgewählte Schauspieler.Da der Film nie richtig veröffentlicht wurde, gibt es keine offizielle deutsche Sprachfassung. Diese hier auf der DVD vorhandene Synchronisation stammt aus den 90er Jahren und passt so richtig nicht zu dem Film. Wenn man die Stimmen mit den Originalstimmen vergleicht, und der Originalton sich wirklich in das Filmgeschehen einbindet, so entspricht die deutsche Sprachfassung zum Teil nicht mehr einigen Handlungsabläufen. Leider gibt es keine deutschen Untertitel.Trotzdem bin ich froh, dass WGF überhaupt den Film in guter Bildqualität auf DVD veröffentlicht hat. Dafür gebührt dem Herausgeber auch mein Dank!Fazit: Für Stanley Kubrick-Filminteressenten,-Fans-und-Sammler ein Muss!