Better than I hoped...

Rating: 8/10 (21 April 2013)

A really good film, enhancing Stanley Kubrick's reputation as a great director. I'm a big fan of Kubrick's work from 1971 onwards but wasn't expecting this film to be very good. Fortunately I was wrong.
The Cruise/Kidman billing put me off right from the start, perhaps suggesting a rather lame, overly stylized level of production, and the film's length at over two-and-a-half hours also put me off, but for all that, it turned out to be an engrossing and entertaining film.
If you're not into full frontal nudity and orgies you're not going to be impressed by this particular method of jolting your attention and setting the scene for the thriller/mystery aspect of the film, which doesn't quite pull it off in terms of tension. I was on the edge of my seat at one point, half-anticipating a Hitchcock thriller with a tense and justifiable ending, but unfortunately the film decided to play it safe, re-focusing on the lust/sexual/marriage aspects of the film instead of giving satisfaction.
The story refocuses on Kubrick's message about potential deceit and who is betraying who, whether the couple are justified in feeling the way they do and how we ourselves would react under such tempting circumstances. Cruise's acting is good, but the transition his character made from being a faithful husband, with doubts about his wife's fidelity, into a man prepared to go to any lengths to satisfy his curiosity, wasn't quite believable.
For all that, I really enjoyed the movie, continuing Kubrick's great run of form since A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, The Shining and Full Metal Jacket. Overall a worthy addition to the SK legacy.
The ending was a little too convenient for me, but it did pose a very interesting question. Are we faithful to our partners because we love them, or because of obstacles that prevent us from being unfaithful?