3. Stanley Kubrick Will Always Glare At You
Each of Stanley Kubricks films are so unique, entering into a different genre so confidently that they prove more revolutionary than the output of director who spends their entire career in one area; 2001 to sci-fi, The Shining to horror, Dr. Strangelove to comedy. But while each of his films share little on a superficial level, theres one element that passes throughout them. The Kubrick Stare, with the actor tilting their heads down with eyes facing up towards the camera is a creepy look that appears in all sorts of films, but is never done better than by the man who gave its name. From Jack in The Shining to Alex in A Clockwork Orange by way of Bowman in 2001, the look comes from totally different motivations, but each time manages to unnerve you. Oddly enough, the earliest example of the stare actually comes from a different master of the art. The devious look Norman Bates gives at the end of Psycho as his mother plots her escape is a dead ringer for the glare. Whats funniest of all, however, is that Kubrick himself has been photographed naturally pulling the face in all together placid way, making us wonder if the recurrence was just a joke the director was having on himself.