Complex psychosexual drama a la Kubrik

Rating: 8/10 (18 July 1999)

This film is definitely worth a look and from a stylistic standpoint is trademark Kubrik. However, I doubt this film will be viewed as another Kubrik masterpiece or some cult film. For all its style I don't think it has the substance for that. On the other hand, this film is so lavishly filmed that it would be a shame to simply try to rate it on a basic star or number scale.
In any case, this was a hard movie for me to review. It's very well done; the acting, the cinematography, the direction, the filming locations, the extravagant architecture, the lighting, the mood, the list goes on and on. However, I think the plot is to some degree open to interpretation.
Basically the story depicts infidelity experienced within the context of dreams, or perhaps drug induced hallucinations, which allow the characters to walk a line between fantasy and reality. What we the viewer are seeing in the majority of the film, except for the beginning and ending, aren't happening in reality. Instead, it's the sexual fantasy induced by the two getting high which acts as sort of a catalyst. This dream or nightmare like state is stylistically and conceptually reminiscent of the eerie scene in "The Shining" where Jack Torrance, played by Jack Nicholson, is alone in the bar and later has visions of murder.
For all its media hype, the nudity is just, well, just really no big deal. I don't know how much editing was done to obstruct some of the scenes, but after viewing it I'm certain it was probably a knee jerk reaction by the part of the movie rating system folks.