Review of Eyes Wide Shut (1999) by Eve D — 11 Jul 2011

Dr. Bill Harford (Tom Cruise) is shocked when he discovers his wife, Alice (Nicole Kidman), reveals that she had contemplated an affair a year earlier. Not being able to stop picturing his wife with the other man, he embarks on a night-long, sexually charged adventure.

Cruise and Kidman have such great chemistry, helped by the fact they were a married couple back when this film was made. I feel like Cruise was a brilliant choice for the lead role, and since Kidman doesn't appear much in the film (most of her screentime is in the opening party), it doesn't feel like a bad thing to cast his current missus in the role.

For a film which centers around Tom Cruise on a sexually charged adventure, it's good to see that the sex and nudity was done tastefully and in quite an artistic manner, with it not being there because it's a sex film, but because it's quite integral to the plot. I expect those that viewed this for gratuitous nudity and sex scenes will be sorely dissapointed.

I felt this film had quite a slow pace, and the beginning was a bit too talky for me, and this had me slighty bored. I can't believe I said that about a Kubrick film, but that's how I felt. When Hartford entered the cult, though, it's from there on that the film really held my interest. I read a review saying this film was too long, with a large number of scenes that could've been easily removed as they added nothing, but while they may not have added anything to the ongoing story, they added more to Dr Hartford, in his choice of not acting upon his sexual feelings, yet still pursuing this quest, and by continuing on with this quest, he's proving he's no better than his wife.

I have been going through Kubricks movies one by one, and after The Shining, Full Metal Jacket and A Clockwork Orange (all of which I gave 100%), I felt this one was a little dissapointing when compared to the Kubrick films i've seen, but I still think it's a strong film and a great choice for Kubrick's swan song.