Kinda missed the mark

Rating: Null/10 (30 September 2003)

I'm unsure of how much (or how little) Kubrick had to do with editing the final version of EWS, but I'm leaning toward "too little". The pieces just didn't come together, and when the ending finally came, I thought- "I just paid $8 to see this." Lord knows this could've been some really juicy cinema. Even with the nudity and sex eclipsed with CGI bodies, it was quite provocative, but went nowhere. Also, I got a strong feeling that there were contract obligations that Kubrick had to live with regarding Cruise and Kidman, meaning that the two were a package deal and he was stuck with them. Cruise' performance was certainly more than adequate, but Kidman's acting seemed forced and 'off the beat'. The uncut version is fleshier, but no better.