8 Things We Learned from 'Stanley Kubrick: The Masterpiece Collection'

The entire oeuvre of Stanley Kubrick is available on various home video formats, and all of his post Spartacus films, each regarded as a classic in their own rite, are available on Blu-ray already. Since the eight remaining films Kubrick made are largely considered masterpieces, Warner Home Video has packaged them in one Blu-ray set aptly called Stanley Kubrick: The Masterpiece Collection.

Since the films from Lolita to Eyes Wide Shut have existed before, the set includes pre-existing bonus material. However there are three new features offering even more insight into Kubrick. The documentary Kubrick Remembered, directed by Gary Khammar, featured Kubrick’s wife Christiane, a look into the Kubrick home, and many of the films’ stars, even Kirk Douglas whose Paths of Glory and Spartacus are not part of this collection. Stanley Kubrick in Focus (new to Blu-ray and to me) features contemporary directors reflecting on Kubrick, and Once Upon a Time… A Clockwork Orange spotlights that film in a new to the U.S. documentary.

Related: 12 Things We Learned from ‘The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug – Extended Edition’

Whether you’re shopping for a cinephile or considering upgrading your own Kubrick collection, we understand you might be wondering how much new information there still is on the legendary director. Well, here are 10 things we learned from watching the three new bonus features, and you can be sure there is even more material included. Stanley Kubrick: The Masterpiece Collection is available December 2.

8 Things We Learned from ‘Stanley Kubrick: The Masterpiece Collection’

Fred Topel is a staff writer at CraveOnline and the man behind Best Episode Ever. Follow him on Twitter at @FredTopel.

8 Things We Learned from Stanley Kubrick: The Masterpiece Collection

Stanley Kubrick Wasn't A Recluse

It’s true he didn’t do interviews, but the first myth Kubrick Remembered wants to dispel is the notion that Kubrick was some kind of hermit. He would socialize and ask lots of questions. Also in the days before social media, people didn’t really know what directors looked like, so they didn’t necessarily know they were speaking with legendary director Stanley Kubrick. Now, he did work from home, which is perhaps something that can be better appreciated in today’s business landscape, so when he was finished shooting a film, he would be completing the editing, or prepping the next one in private.
He Didn't Change the End of Paths of Glory for His Wife

Kubrick met Christiane in Munich while casting a new part he had written for the end of Paths of Glory. She would come on stage and sing a folk song. At the time, producer James B. Harris thought Kubrick changed the ending for a girl. Now they all agree the lyrical ending was more appropriate for the film.
He Directed Gay Hamilton's Breasts in Barry Lyndon

How detail oriented was Stanley Kubrick? In a seductive scene in the costume drama Barry Lyndon, Gay Hamilton hides a ribbon between her breasts. Now she shares the story of how Kubrick told her how to lift her right breast for the camera, then pull in the left, and back and forth. Okay, he was joking about this. He wasn’t a creep, and he had a good sense of humor about his own micromanaging.
He Really Did Do 100 Takes

Kubrick was known for doing numerous retakes, and many of his actors confirm this on the documentary. Ryan O’Neal was particularly resistant, and Vincent D’Onofrio remembers one actor on Full Metal Jacket who did the same line for two days only to have it cut from the movie. Or, you could wait all day and never work. Kubrick held Thomas Gibson for an entire day to relight a scene in Eyes Wide Shut.
Kubrick Was Also Responsible for His Iconic Posters

Kubrick was hands on in the marketing of his films, because of course he was. All those film students who put posters of A Clockwork Orange on their dorm walls should know Kubrick chose the font carefully, and assigned the artist to use the same font in every language in which the film would be translated. The helmet reading “Born to Kill” for Full Metal Jacket was another image over which Kubrick toiled until they got it right.
He Never Threw Anything Away

All the archival material on Kubrick’s film still exists because he kept it stored and never followed through with his promise to clean it up one day. In this case, we can be grateful he never did spring cleaning, because we consider every note Kubrick took to be historically important.
Kubrick Wouldn't Talk About Spartacus, Even to Steven Spielberg

Steven Spielberg is featured on Kubrick in Focus and he knew Kubrick, ultimately directing the script to A.I. after Kubrick’s death. Spartacus was a job for hire. Douglas suggested him after the original director, Anthony Mann, was fired. Still, Kubrick would always change the subject when Spielberg wanted to ask about Spartacus.
Malcolm McDowell Improvised 'Singin' in the Rain,' and It Cost a Lot

One of the most shocking scenes in A Clockwork Orange is the rape committed by the the droogs while Alex (McDowell) sings “Singin’ in the Rain.” McDowell tells the story of working on that scene for five days, Kubrick encouraging him to improvise. When he started singing, Kubrick immediately bought the rights.