Although his age is not mentioned in the film, the novel depicts him as a 15 year old boy. During the first third of the film, viewers get an idea of a typical night in Alex's life. We see him drinking drug laced milk with his friends (droogs), fight a rival gang, steal a car to play "hogs of the road" while driving on the wrong side of the road, and break into a house to brutally attack a man, rape his wife, and steal from them. This is Alex's idea of a good time. He absolutly enjoys taking part in "ultraviolence". Alex considers himself to be the leader of his droogs, and he loves to abuse his power. At one point, his droogs get tired of his antics and power trips. They set him up to get caught by the police after breaking into a woman's house. While in the house, Alex attacks the woman. He hits her on the head so hard that he ends up killing her. The police arrive and arrest him. When he's brought to the police station, he is told that he is being charged for murder. He is sentenced to fourteen years in prison.
Alex serves two years of his sentence. Throughout his time there he hears of a new treatment being proposed by a political party that promises to cut down on crime. Alex learns that the treatment, called the Ludovico Technique, is supposed to make a person good and keep them out of prison forever. This intrigues Alex, for he wishes for nothing more than to get out of jail and seek revenge on his droogs. One day, the Minister of the Interior pays a visit to the prison to select a candidate for the Ludovico Technique. Alex volunteers himself, thinking that this will be an easy way to be free again. They accept him, and the next day he is transfered to a hospital to begin the treatment.
What Alex thought would be a walk in the park is actually horrifying aversion therapy to condition him against sex and violence. He is injected with a serum that causes him to feel sickness and pain, and is then forced to watch films that include violence, rape, and torture. After multiple sessions, his body associates the sickness with sex and violence, making him sick at the thought of acting on such urges. He is not even able to witness such things or he will feel deathly ill. The treatment turns him into a machine-like being that is unable to have any moral choice. He is forced to choose good over evil, no matter what.
After the treatment is complete, Alex is released back into the world. Instead of enjoying the freedom he longed for, he feels fear, for he is unable to protect or defend himself. This makes him feel helpless and suicidal. Many people that he had done wrong to in the past seek revenge on him, and he is rendered defenseless. This leads him to attempt suicide...
For those of you that have not seen A Clockwork Orange, I hope this summary gives you an idea of what happens in the film. I do not want to spoil the entire movie, so if you want to find out how it ends, rent it!
The movie is not for everyone. It has a lot of violence, nudity, sexuality, and offensive scenes of religious nature. If this doesn't bother you, I highly recommend this film.
