I knew I loved him
Obsessive, perfectionist-types always intrigue me (probably because I share both of those traits. I can spend hours, even days, on such tiny details of a project…its enough to drive you mad really.) From the first time I saw one of Stanley Kubrick’s films I knew I loved him - for his highly detailed style and obsessive work habits. It was a pleasure to come across a documentary tonight, called Stanley Kubrick’s Boxes, which explains further, the workings of Kubrick’s mind.
Filmmaker Jon Ronson was invited to the Kubrick estate to go through his insane collections of boxes (which number into the thousands!) The contents of the boxes are extremely varied - from photos to fan letters, and they illustrate what a detailed and interesting man he was. No facet of a film was overlooked or too small - for example, hundreds of photographs of doorways and costume shops and gates were taken to be sure that every scene in Eyes Wide Shut was perfect and accurate. The immense research he would undertake for a story is completely inspiring. And the the depression that would ensue, had he no story that interested him - the constant search for that magical thing.
I loved the bit about how Stanley had no idea of what a holiday or vacation was and how his colleague found it hard to explain to him why one might want to ‘relax’. One does not create masterpieces, or build up a lifetime worth of work by relaxing.
Not a total aside, but on the subject of boxes, and the elusive magic of inspiration, a story about J.J. Abrams (creator of LOST), was given at a T.E.D. conference a while back:
When JJ was very young he was totally into magic and that interest led to his infatuation with creating mystery. During his presentation JJ showed a “secret” magic box he was given as a child that he hasn’t opened yet, and not knowing what’s inside continues to inspire him in what he does today. He said, “mystery is more important than knowledge.”
You never know what might fuel those flashes of inspiration. Tonight, for me, it is the grand wall of boxes lining the walls of Kubrick’s archive - I hope I might be able to one day amass something as impressive.
To watch the full documentary follow this link
(Image: Stanley Kubrick by Antony Hare)
