Eyes Wide Shut ****
rated R Warner Bros. Pictures 159 minutes starring Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Sydney Pollack, Marie Richardson, Rade Serbedzija, Todd Field, Vinessa Shaw, Leelee Sobieski inspired by the novella "Traumnovelle" by Arthur Schnitzler written by Stanley Kubrick and Fredric Raphael directed by Stanley Kubrick
In my years of watching movies, I have never once heard anyone be called a Kubrick rip-off. Sure, film students from here to Timbuktu constantly use Tarantino and Scorsese as "inspirations", but no one can rip-off Stanley Kubrick. Why? Maybe because Kubrick's work was so distinctive, right down to every detail. Stanley Kubrick was film's most notorious perfectionist, and up until his death a few months ago, he may have been film's greatest visionary.
With films like "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Spartacus" he took us to places that we've never been, and with "A Clockwork Orange" and "Dr. Strangelove", he expanded our knowledge of things we may have seen. Kubrick's 17th and final film, "Eyes Wide Shut", is a masterpiece which is also his most intimate and character-driven film.
In "Eyes Wide Shut", Tom Cruise plays Doctor William Hartford, who is living the upper-class life in Manhattan with his wife, Alice(Nicole Kidman) and their young daughter, Helena(Madison Eginton). The film opens as Bill and Alice are getting ready for a Christmas party held by Bill's friend, Victor(Sydney Pollack). At the party, both Alice and Bill are hit on, but both escape their desires.
That night, after the party, Alice confesses to having sexual fantasies about other men. After she describes her desires in graphic detail, Bill has an eventful night on the town where he makes many sexual and moral discoveries. These involve a hooker, a jazz lounge, an orgy and a couple of deaths.
Bill ends up getting himself caught up in a psychological web of jealousy, obsession and revenge. The succession of events are dark, haunting and disturbing. There is a scene, which takes place at a ritual orgy, that is one of the most graphic, terrifying and provocative scenes that Stanley Kubrick has ever put to film.
"Eyes Wide Shut" garnered lots of publicity concerning its risky subject matter, its two-year long shoot, and its brush with an NC-17 rating. But everything seems to have paid off. Cruise and Kidman fit their roles perfectly, and all the components fit together.
The film is excellent in its portrayal of a bored married couple and it is excellent as a dark mood piece. Kubrick magically pushes us further and further into the story, and the intrigue never ceases. "Eyes Wide Shut" is a thriller, a romance and a work of art.
The years that have passed since "Full Metal Jacket" seem to be worth the wait, because "Eyes Wide Shut" is one of 1999's best films. The film is quite long, and not for the faint of heart. Those expecting a Tom Cruise romantic comedy a la "Jerry Maguire" will be disappointed. Those looking for challenging fare among the mess of summer movies will be pleasantly surprised.
Stanley Kubrick's legacy will continue to live on, both in film schools and at home. Although he may have been eccentric, he managed to make unconventional films that people wanted to see. He gave us something to think about. There is always more to his films than meets the eye, and his final masterpiece, "Eyes Wide Shut", is no exception.
a review by Akiva Gottlieb, The Teenage Movie Critic akiva@excite.com http://teenagemoviecritic.8m.com
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