Eyes Wide Shut Rating (out of five): ***** Starring Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Sydney Pollack, Todd Field, Marie Richardson, Rade Serbedzija, Leelee Sobieski, Vinessa Shaw and Madison Eginton Directed by Stanley Kubrick Written by Stanley Kubrick (based on a novel by Arthur Schnitzler) Rated R for profanity, sex, nudity, drug use and very mature themes Theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 Released in 1999 Running 159 minutes
One of the key signatures of a Stanley Kubrick film is that it can be read on several different levels. In many circles, Dr. Strangelove and 2001: A Space Odyssey are accepted as allegorical sexual satires. Many people believe The Shining to be a racial statement against the evils of killing Indians. Even Spartacus is not safe from intricate deconstruction. And now comes along Eyes Wide Shut, Kubrick's most thematically complex and intellectually stimulating film yet. It is also one of his greatest.
Regarding Eyes Wide Shut as merely a plot-driven psychological thriller is doing the film a great injustice. In fact, I prefer not to take the film literally at all. Many critics have blasted Kubrick's swan song for being too much of a free-form, open ended, unsexy bore; shame on them! If you need pervasive sex to have a satisfactory movie-going experience, look elsewhere. Based on Arthur Schnitzler's classic novella "Traumnovelle", Eyes Wide Shut's sole purpose is to evoke a strange, nightmare-like state. The criticism that the film has no real conclusion is highly inept. After all, when was the last time you had a dream or nightmare that had any kind of resolution? This is a tough film that raises some very serious questions, and is brave enough to admit that it has no clear-cut, black and white answers. The viewer is left to make his own conclusions and judgments, something virtually unheard of in modern film making.
At the heart of the story is Dr. Bill Harford's (Tom Cruise) night of sexual odyssey through the streets of New York and the harsh reality that follows. In many ways, the plot is very reminiscent of Martin Scorsese's forgotten sleeper After Hours, which consisted of short, bizarre vignettes where the hero was at the mercy of whatever oddball he might have the misfortune of running into. Such is Dr. Bill's case; in the coarse of one night, he has lost almost all control of his life and becomes dependent of other people's actions. The phrase "in over his head" doesn't even begin to describe the potentially deadly situations he gets himself involved in.
The fuel for his fire is jealousy over his wife, Alice (Nicole Kidman, taking a much more supporting role than was expected). It seems that during their Cape Cod vacation over a year ago, she was sexually tempted by an unknown Naval officer, claiming that she would have given up everything - Bill, their daughter, even her future - for just one night with this anonymous sailor. Throughout the night, Bill is periodically enflamed by fantasies of his wife with the officer. This only pushes him further and further into his self-dug hole.
This is, of course, a very literal interpretation of the story. As I said, the film is best when viewed in a less superficial light. It is, in all aspects, a dream (or nightmare, perhaps) put onto celluloid.
Much has been said of the climactic orgy sequence (which, ironically, comes mid-way through the film) and the digital "masking" that it underwent for American release. While I am steadfastly against tampering with the work of a genius, I do believe that some people are making too much of this. The fact that the studio felt the hypocritical need to cater to younger audiences (which the movie is clearly not meant for to begin with) is reprehensible, but if nobody knew that 65 seconds of film had been altered, I feel confident that the orgy sequence would be remembered as the brilliantly effective scene that it is. Trust me; it is absolutely terrifying even as it stands.
Alas, some people are outraged by this alteration (Roger Ebert has dubbed it the "Austin Powers" version, referring to the strategic placement of objects to hide certain body parts), even going as far as to dock the film a half-star for a mistake on the studio's part. Frankly, I find this laughable; it's almost as if they are looking for a reason to withhold a top rating for fear of seeming biased. However, I am not afraid to say it; Eyes Wide Shut is a masterwork, possibly the finest film of the decade and certainly more than worthy of being a genius' final testament.
Copyright 1999 Jason Wallis
Find all of Jason's reviews at http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Boulevard/7475
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