A Clockwork Orange (1971)

A Clockwork Orange parents guide

Real scares and no jump scares, about what an NC-17 should carry.

Scare

Properly scary

Frightening, not just tense.

Jump scares

None noted

Gore

Graphic gore

Blood and wounds shown clearly.

Violence

Brutal violence

Our top level for violence.

Sex and nudity

Strong

Strong means explicit or repeated sex, extended nudity, or sexual assault shown on screen, attempted or completed, even partly off screen. Any one of these is enough.

Language

Moderate

Some strong profanity, a few f-words.

How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.

Three questions

Is A Clockwork Orange scary?

Yes, properly. A Clockwork Orange is the real thing without being an endurance test.

How gory is A Clockwork Orange?

Graphic gore and brutal violence. If graphic gore is a dealbreaker, skip it.

What is A Clockwork Orange rated, and is it OK for kids?

No. It is rated NC-17, with real scares, strong sex and nudity, and brutal violence.

What is A Clockwork Orange about?

In a near-future Britain, young Alexander DeLarge and his pals get their kicks beating and raping anyone they please. When not destroying the lives of others, Alex swoons to the music of Beethoven. The state, eager to crack down on juvenile crime, gives an incarcerated Alex the option to undergo an invasive procedure that'll rob him of all personal agency. In a time when conscience is a commodity, can Alex change his tune?

Cast and crew

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A Clockwork Orange is on our Halloween, Most violent, Dystopias, Based on books and Dark lists.

More like this feeling

Prompts we typed into CouchRot, and the lists that share its tags.

• “a movie that will make me cry”
• “a fun halloween movie, not too scary”
• “scary but not gory”

Lists with the same feel: Absurdist.