Strong, but incomplete

Rating: Null/10 (18 September 2000)

Possible Spoilers:
Eyes Wide Shut makes some very heavy statements, and has a strong beginning: a happily married, successful couple in the prime of their lives, a doctor and an art curator, have a full life and a close marriage. They attend socials and enjoy the occasional light recreational drugs together. What can possibly go wrong? Everything; and all based on a simple argument. A suave European comes onto the wife at a social; she mentions this while they are both stoned after the party. He gives his wife a compliment that of course he would find her attractive, because she is so beautiful. Wrong thing to say. She takes this as a deep insult that she cannot be attractive because of her mind; also, she gets the impression that he is quite complacent about her fidelity. As revenge, she proceeds to tell him in detail of a strong fantasy she had about a naval officer she saw at a distance on their honeymoon, not realizing how damaging this would be to him. The next morning, she has forgotten about it; he has not, and starts questioning his entire marriage, seeking revenge on her by intending to go out and have a quick affair. He comes across hookers, who he pays money to but can't go through with it; he loves his wife, and knows this will damage their marriage, and besides, she hadn't actually cheated on him. Still, he cannot get the mental infidelity out of his mind, which makes a very strong comment about the expectations we have of our partner's faithfulness.
And then things really go to hell. He gets a tip about a wild party, and goes to it in disguise, only to discover it is a hedonistic orgy with possible satanic overtones. He is caught and revealed as an outsider. Threats to him and his wife are made.
During these journeys leading up to this disaster, there are many disturbing scenes as he discovers the difference between sexual fantasy and sexual reality. In one scene he buys a costume from an austere man whose 16 year-old daughter is an uncontrollable nymphomanic. He tries to control her by locking her in the house, but never seeks professional help. Later, the doctor discovers the man has decided to profit from his daughter's nymphomania by pimping her out. This scene, short and quick, is more disturbing and with darker implications than anything else in the movie.

After being left a rather obvious hint that he and his wife are being watched and followed, and terrified of possible violence to his wife, the husband confesses to his wife what happened; she is devastated, but they make up in the end, which is the movie's biggest problem: after the messy betrayal, hurt, and damage they have done to each other, mostly by non-communication, they wrap everything up while Christmas-shopping with their daughter.
The movie's most potent statements concern what we take for granted in our relationships, what we presume, and how our emotions which begin relationships can as quickly and stupidly destroy them. It also shows how thin the line is between sexual fantasy and sexual nightmare, and how close sex, love, and trust are tied. The problem with the movie is that after these elements are laid out, they are not pursued fully. They are left where they are while convoluted story elements take place, such as a possible murder that may have happened, and other subplots. And the ending wraps up threads way too disparate and tangled, way too neatly and quickly, leaving for a very unsatisfactory ending. The most that could be hoped for in this mess would be the couple's willingness to pick up the pieces and communicate their feelings more honestly.
And perhaps, giving up the recreational drugs that started the mess in the first place. Seven out of ten stars; it had the possibility of being ten out of ten. One wonders what Kubrik might have changed about it if he had lived longer.