A brilliant farewell from a brilliant director.

Rating: 10/10 (18 July 1999)

Let me start by saying that last March, I was deeply saddened by the death of Stanley Kubrick. I never met the man, but with reading his biographies and watching his movies countless times, I can understand what the man is trying to say through his films. I was upset that we will never see the much awaited Kubrick film titled "A.I." (ARTIFICIAL INTELLENGENCE), but I am pleased that we will see one more film of Kubrick's titled "EYES WIDE SHUT." For months, even before Kubrick's death, I was highly eager for this film. One of the best director's of all time first film in twelve years (since 1987 FULL METAL JACKET). And it came no surprise that the film kept getting delayed, (from December of 1998, to March 1999, and finally July 16, 1999). But I knew Kubrick would do that. One of his most famous tales is that the MGM executives were upset at Kubrick for delaying "2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY." One of the MGM exceutives asked Kubrick, "is that the title of the movie, or when it's coming out?" But the time has come, July 16th has finally arrived. Before I saw a exclusive sneak of EYES WIDE SHUT, I hyped myself up for this film. I watched parts of 2001, and all of A CLOCKWORK ORANGE on my DVD player at home, the night before I saw EYES WIDE SHUT. And when I saw EYES WIDE SHUT, I was prepared. My heart was racing when I saw the Warner Bros. symbol, then the words "Warner Bros. Presents" "Tom Cruise" "Nicole Kidman" "In A Stanely Kubrick Film." The eerie carnival-waltz music playing in the background, while the viewer sees the back-side of Nicole Kidman, as she's undressing. The viewer sees Kidman, undress until she's completely nude. Then the words "EYES WIDE SHUT" appear. And from there on, I went though the most complex plot and thought provoking film that I have seen since "THE MATRIX." This film really took me out of my theater seat, and into the world of Dr. Bill Hartford (Tom Cruise). This is a brilliant film from a brilliant director! Stanley Kubrick proved that throughout his carrer, he didn't make one bad movie. And I feel that EYES WIDE SHUT should be placed with Kubrick's other classics: DR. STRANGELOVE, THE KILLING, A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, 2001, THE SHINING, and the rest of his films. This is a film that you have to go to, and please bring your intellegence, otherwise, it won't make any sense. After watching this film with a couple of friends, we discussed how complex the plot was of this film. And days later, we still talk about certain scenes and plot points in the film. It's like going to a crime scene, and trying to figure out who did the murder, and what was the motive. What other director can do this to a film! Kubrick tells both so much, and so little. He let's the viewer think about what's going on, but doesn't show it. He'll let the viewer think about what's going to happen, but won't say. Very few director's in Hollywood or in the film industry will do this. Instead they would rather "entertain" the viewer. They tell the story, let the viewer know what happend, and what's going to happen to them in the future, and then give them a happy ending. Kubrick isn't like that, he doesn't make entertainment, he makes art. 2001 is one of the few films that I would say, deserves a gold frame around it's screen, and placed in the Louve in Paris. EYES WIDE SHUT is another film that deserves that same treatment. This is a work of art,the editing, the cinematography, the acting, the errie music, and the story are all done with a touch of brillance. This is a worthy film of Kubrick's. Unlike other film critic's I respect Stanley Kubrick and his family very much. So out of respect, I will not reveal any of the plot points or discuss the plot. The plot of the film is both too simple and complex to discuss. It's something that needs to been seen, to understand. But I will mention this, Kubrick fans will notice Kubrick using some of his famous directing moves in this film. The Christmas party in EYES WIDE SHUT looks very similar to the Gold Ballroom scene in THE SHINING. The following the character around the huge building without cutting, or doing a different camera angle. The unique camera angles, the very rapid long shot to extreme close up shot (done in A CLOCKWORK ORANGE when Alex sees his old droogs become officer's. And in THE SHINING when Wendy sees the shocking mirror reflection of the word "murder"). And the single character standing alone in a big room, or walking down the street. No surprise, I found this not only one of the best films of the year, but also of all time. I'm sad that were not going to see another Kubrick film. But I am glad that I lived in a time to see his work. To be both influenced and astonished at the same time, while watching his movies. Farewell Stanley, thank you very much for the works of art, and may you rest in peace. ***** (out of five)