'Stanley Kubrick, The Exhibition' reveals the processes of the great auteur

Stanley Kubrick, The Exhibition at La Cinémathèque Française, Paris, explores a rich archive devoted to the renowned director (23 March - 31 July).

Kubrick is frequently portrayed as obsessive and secretive, but is also thought of as a visionary. His films are divisive among critics, either considered bizarre or revolutionary, but always display meticulous attention to detail, and their surrealist elements and non-linear structures have influenced an entire generation of subsequent filmmakers.

Not one for pandering to the press, Kubrick never saw the simplistic side of things, and in an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine in 1987 he stated that "the truth is too multifaceted to be contained in a five-line summary. If the work is good, what you say about it is usually irrelevant." Holding to that sentiment, films such as Dr. Strangelove, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Shining, A Clockwork Orange and Eyes Wide Shut have gone down in cinematic history.

This exhibition gives fans and film enthusiasts alike an insight into the complex world of Kubrick - his inspirations and processes - and draws from archives containing precious documents including alternative film scenes, correspondence, research materials, photos of film shoots and props. A programme of screenings of all of Kubrick’s films is also scheduled, as well as some of his shorts that were not so widely distributed. Other highlights include a look at Kubrick's unfinished projects:  the film he hoped to direct Napoleon, about the military and political leader, and Ayran Papers, a documentary film on the Nazi death camps.

There will also be a series of more personal talks by Kubrick's wife Christiane and his brother-in-law and executive producer Jan Harlan.

Morven Watt