Kubrick Stare

Watch as an animation →

Tags

In plain words

The head tilts down slightly and the eyes glare at the camera from under the brows. It feels uneasy and eerie.

When to use it

A villain's entrance in a thriller or horror film, the moment a character breaks down, one intense shot in a mystery ad or music video.

One-click prompt

Head tilted slightly down while the eyes glare upward into the lens from under the brow, a pale man in a dark suit stands motionless at the end of an empty ballroom corridor, unblinking, slow push-in, wide symmetrical framing, 24mm lens, cold overhead light, menacing mood, 6-second shot.

Tell the AI like this

close-up, head tilted slightly down, eyes looking up from under the brow straight into the lens, unblinking menacing stare, faint sinister smile, static camera

Example videos

The Terror of the Kubrick Stare — Explainer: See what the expression looks like, with the actor tilting the head and looking up at the camera from under the brows.

Example films

A Clockwork Orange (1971) — The film crew gave it this name after seeing the expression of the main character, Alex · The Shining (1980) — Along with Full Metal Jacket, it is counted among the films that use this stare most prominently

See it in real films and ads

Wikipedia — Kubrick stare

AI-made examples

Not verified

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