4/5 Not the Novel, but a Good Film
  by Chuck
Maybe I'm more favorably disposed toward this film because I have no loyalty at all toward the novel. I had to put down the book, never to return, after the hotel scene in which Humbert screws his 12-year-old stepdaughter. That may be a vulgar way of putting it, but one of things I disliked about the novel was how the ugly facts of pedophila and child molestation got embellished in long passages of thick purple prose, the suffocating inner workings of Humbert's sick mind, which may ultimately have been the writer's objective but I found the whole premise too repulsive to continue.

As noted in another review here, Kubrick takes us out of Humbert's mind and observes Humbert objectively in context with others. And his Lolita is older than Nabokov's, looking more like 16, and acting like a wily and precocious femme fatale who makes fools of men of all ages. And since the men act like fools, it's natural that this would become a comedy, albeit a dark one. I can appreciate reviewers who object to the inclusion of Peter Sellers' shtick because it tends to trivialize the tone of the film; the bit with Sellers as the cliched Austrian psychoanalyst was maybe too TV, though the juxtaposition of this Goon Show-like character and Mason's carefully mannered, uptight Humbert was truly funny, especially the expression on Mason's face--almost as though he was thinking, "Kubrick, what the hell is going on here??". I think that Kubrick used Sellers to much better effect later in "Dr. Strangelove", which may have been the result of his experimenting with Sellers in "Lolita".

Anyway, on the whole the performances are good and there are great comedic moments. There is a tragic feel toward the end of the film as we see Humbert's pathetic attempts to maintain and protect his idealized life with Lolita as it rapidly falls apart, and Mason delivers a standout performance of this.

So, see the film on its own terms, don't expect the novel, and enjoy.

4/5 3.5 stars out of 4
  by One-Line Film Reviews (Easton, MD)
The Bottom Line:

As long as you don't go into Lolita expecting to see Nabakov's novel put literally on screen, you'll probably be impressed by this fine (if a tad long) adaptation; the acting is top-notch, the B/W cinematography very effective and the conclusion surprisingly poignant

5/5 "Don't Stand So Close to Me"
  by Phoebe Stogstill (by the shores of Gitchee Goomie)
Although this movie does not really accurately portray Nabokov's story, it is a work of art in itself. Sue Lyon is perfect as the object of sexual obsession. James Mason is perfect as the obsessed. Shelly Winters is perfect as Shelly Winters. Sue was never able to continue on with different roles and we wonder what she would have been like if she had. We are able to start to see some of Stanley Kubrick's genius in this early movie of his career. Although, I don't personally approve of this type of situation, I am highly entertained by it and we have all known characters that resemble the characters in the movie. They are people we snicker about behind hand-covered mouths. The song by the Police, "Don't Stand So Close to Me" serves to conjure up scenes from the movie and provides a romanticized and fitting musical tribute.

5/5 Great Movie
  by Samantha Howard (USA)
This movie is funny, intense, and pure greatness. Almost as good as the book. A lot less sexual than the book Lolita. Even though this movie is black and white it somehow feels colorful because of Lolita's personality.

3/5 Very disjointed...
  by N. Mcdevitt
It goes without saying that the book is better than the movie, but I just had to say it anyway because it's so true. There are a ton of great reviews of the movie here on Amazon so I'll be brief.

3 Stars were given becuase of the very fine acting, especially Shelly Winters. Winters portrays almost exactly the Charlotte Haze that I had envisioned in my mind when reading the book. Sue Lyon does a fine job as Dolores even though she looks nothing at all like how I pictured Lolita in my mind, she's too pretty.

My main gripe about the movie is the incessant fading to black after every scene and the constant appearances of Quilty!
The most annoying scene in the entire movie is when Quilty comes out to talk to Humbert at the hotel.
In the movie Peter Sellers goes on a long strange ramble that makes very little sense and was a little annoying to me.
However, this scene in the book, when the understandably paranoid Humbert is biding his time waiting for his drugged nymphet to finally go unconscious is surprised to find another guest on the patio with him, is one of my very favorite scenes in the book. The artful way that Nabokov has our "poor Humbert" mis-hear the casual conversation of his fellow guest was truly a master work of literature, the movie totally botched this scene!
OK movie of a great book...