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Lolita

Play trailer Poster for Lolita 1962 2h 32m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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89% Tomatometer 45 Reviews 84% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
With a screenplay penned by the author himself, Stanley Kubrick brings Vladimir Nabokov's controversial tale of forbidden love to the screen. Humbert Humbert (James Mason) is a European professor who relocates to an American suburb, renting a room from lonely widow Charlotte Haze (Shelley Winters). Humbert marries Charlotte, but only to nurture his obsession with her comely teenage daughter, Lolita (Sue Lyon). After Charlotte's sudden death, Humbert has Lolita all to himself -- or does he?
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Lolita

Lolita

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Critics Consensus

Kubrick's Lolita adapts its seemingly unadaptable source material with a sly comedic touch and a sterling performance by James Mason that transforms the controversial novel into something refreshingly new without sacrificing its essential edge.

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Critics Reviews

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Variety Staff Variety An occasionally amusing but shapeless film. Mar 26, 2009 Full Review Dave Kehr Chicago Reader Where Nabokov was witty, Kubrick is sometimes merely snide, but fine performances (particularly from Peter Sellers, as the ominous Clare Quilty) cover most of the rough spots. May 8, 2007 Full Review Geoff Andrew Time Out Far more satisfying than his later works (one hesitates to call them mere movies). Jun 24, 2006 Full Review Mike Massie Gone With The Twins It steadily becomes aggravating and disquieting as every role grows more erratic, distrustful, deceitful, selfish, predatory, and corrupt; every life involved is twisted and destroyed. Rated: 4/10 Sep 25, 2025 Full Review Pauline Kael Partisan Review The surprise of Lolita is how enjoyable it is: it’s the first new American comedy since those great days in the 1940’s when Preston Sturges recreated comedy with verbal slapstick. Sep 11, 2023 Full Review Dwight MacDonald Esquire Magazine Lolita is a disappointment because we have a right to expect more from Kubrick (he may come through with his next, which I am told is to be a satirical treatment of the nuclear "defense" problem). May 6, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Harold C. Visually striking and powerfully acted, this one left me conflicted. The filmmaking feels both old and new, the performances are top-tier, and the moral ambiguity is fascinating—but the uncomfortable subject matter and heavy pacing keep it from landing higher. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/30/25 Full Review Ken M I’ve seen the film a few times over the years. I read the novel recently and while the film gets the major episodes right, Sue Lyon struck me strongly as a mature young teenager, no where near a 12 year old either physically or emotionally; obviously they couldn’t cast an actual 12 year as the film couldn’t have been made. Given the 12 year old age from the novel and all that implies really makes the novel impossible to film as written, so the film was a compromise. Actually not much is made of Humbert’s obsession during the first hour of the film; it’s mostly her mother and Humbert (Winters is the highlight of it all and is perfect). I believe the remake of the film with Jeremy Irons cast an even older girl. G Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/29/25 Full Review Gianluca P A rewriting of the book that entirely missed the point of the story, mischaracterizing Dolores as tempting and the real manipulator instead of what she really is, a helpless victim. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 08/21/25 Full Review RedApple A The script might be controversial, but the cinematography is undeniable. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 08/15/25 Full Review Sto C it's a shame to have a movie like this in the middle of two giants like Spartacus and Dr.Strangelove in Kubrick's film collection. It's a failed attempt to make a movie out of a plotless book — also it gets spoiled in it's entirety at the beginning. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 07/31/25 Full Review Patrick G. 7.5/10 Dis was pretty slow Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 07/22/25 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

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Stanley Kubrick

Director

James Mason

Prof. Humbert Humbert

Shelley Winters

Charlotte Haze

Sue Lyon

Lolita

Peter Sellers

Clare Quilty

Marianne Stone

Vivian Darkbloom

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Lolita

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Movie Info

Synopsis With a screenplay penned by the author himself, Stanley Kubrick brings Vladimir Nabokov's controversial tale of forbidden love to the screen. Humbert Humbert (James Mason) is a European professor who relocates to an American suburb, renting a room from lonely widow Charlotte Haze (Shelley Winters). Humbert marries Charlotte, but only to nurture his obsession with her comely teenage daughter, Lolita (Sue Lyon). After Charlotte's sudden death, Humbert has Lolita all to himself -- or does he?
Director
Stanley Kubrick
Producer
James B. Harris
Screenwriter
Vladimir Nabokov
Distributor
MGM/UA Home Entertainment Inc., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Criterion Collection, Warner Home Vídeo
Production Co
Harris-Kubrick Productions, Anya, Seven Arts Productions, Transwood
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 13, 1962, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 31, 2008
Runtime
2h 32m
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