I like this movie in spite of myself

Rating: Null/10 (15 August 2004)

When this movie came out in 1999 I refused to go see it as well as rent it. Why? Because I loathe Tom Cruise. In all the movies I'd ever seen him in he always plays a cocky, arrogant, self-assured pretty-boy. I never thought of him as an actor; just as a guy who got lucky enough to be paid to just be himself on screen.
Recently I broke down and watched this movie. In spite of myself, I liked it. Why? For a couple reasons. Firstly, because it was just soooooo recognizable as a Stanley Kubrick piece of work. I'm not sure why his visual approach to cinematography is so appealing to me, but it is. Secondly, for the first time ever I saw someone get Tom Cruise to act like someone besides Tom Cruise. I still dislike Cruise as an actor, but was amazed that Kubrick was apparently able to wrest control of his ego enough to get him to act.
The result is a confusing, disturbing, pleasing to the eyes to watch film that screams Kubrick on every level. Love him or hate him, he did what he always does.
One additional note. I've always found it intriguing how Kubrick would refuse to ever come back to the US, therefore, all of his post "Lolita" movies were made in the UK for American audiences. If you watch 2001 enough times, you'll notice that people with American accents pronounce certain words in a classic English manner, and in "Eyes Wide Shut", you notice that none of the scenes that show New York City ever really show you anything you can recognize or identify as a landmark. That's because none of it was filmed in the US, and only a few of the actors were really Americans.
All in all, a bizarre movie that raises many more questions than it answers, but if you are a Kubrick fan, you won't complain.