Kubrick's new movie filled with great little moments...

Rating: Null/10 (25 July 1999)

I just got back from seeing "Eyes Wide Shut". I'm haunted by the movie in the same way I was haunted by "A Clockwork Orange" and "2001: A Space Odyssey". Whereas I felt "The Shining" and "Full Metal Jacket" were great flicks, I was happy to see that "Eyes" reminded me most of "Clockwork"...with its surrealistic qualities bolstered by various classical compositions one would normally consider proper and non-surreal. With "Clockwork", he gave a whole new meaning to popular classics like "Beethoven's 9th" and "Singin' In the Rain", associating cruel and sadistic violence with wonderful, cheery music. Here, he does it again.

Oddly enough, what I loved most about this film is the Shostakovich waltz that was played earlier in the film and in the final credits...it was a lilting little tune that intensified the madness on the screen with its deliberate innocence. And, more importantly, it was Kubrick at his best again, making movies in his own eccentric style and with no compromises. (Believe it or not, I actually predicted early in the film that Kubrick would use this tune for his end credits...and I was right! I like to think I have a connection with Stanley.)
Another scene that I liked and that I thought evoked Kubrick's style is the scene where the old man drives to the front gate of the mansion where the orgy was held, and hands Tom Cruise the note. When the old man gets out of his car and walks to the gate, I was instantly reminded of the aging Keir Dullea character at the end of "2001", walking across the floor to see who's looking at him from behind. The reason I was reminded of this is that, for one, the actor looked a lot like Dullea from a distance. Also, it was the same type of deliberate walk that Dullea made in "Odyssey". (Kubrick's actors all seem to have certain looks and mannerisms about them, although one look that I was waiting to see and didn't was the ever-menacing downward-tilted-head-with-eyes-looking-directly-up-at-the-camera. No matter. He must have decided to give it up. All of you Kubrick fans know what I'm talking about.) Kubrick shined through brilliantly in the segment at the gate, as he did in all of the other segments of the film. Little moments like these make it all worthwhile for me, and this movie is his best since "Clockwork". I am sad that this is the last Kubrick film that will ever be made.
I have to stress one point, however, that cannot be overlooked. I have a problem with the digital enhancements that apparently took place during the orgy. I have to believe that Kubrick would not have let the studio talk him into censuring his film with artificial footage in order to save us from actually seeing female private parts. It is an essentially non-Kubrickian philosophy. However, I have read where he tentatively agreed to it before he died. Hopefully so, because I would hate to think I'm watching a film that was butchered after he died and ultimately against his wishes.

That said, "Eyes Wide Shut" is an experience I won't soon forget, and I'll need to see it more and more times to get all I can out of it. Great film, Stanley.