Word: kubrick
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...work back through Schnitzler's convoluted narrative, one thing becomes very, very clear. Kubrick made a dreadful, almost impossible mistake in choosing Dream Story as a source for a cinematic narrative...
Eyes Wide Shut is difficult to summarize, but it's organization is practically identical to Schnitzler's novel (Kubrick's insistence on an "inspired by" credit for Schnitzler seems not only wrong, but ego-driven). Cruise and Kidman play Bill and Alice Harford, a couple that seemingly have it all--looks, boatloads of money, great sex, an adorable child and a London-esque apartment in New York City. When they attend an ostentatious Christmas ball thrown by a wealthy friend (Sydney Pollack), Alice gets plastered and finds herself dancing with a skeezy Hungarian player; he whispers cheesy pick-up lines...
...Kubrick's opening is so numbingly boring that he almost loses his audience before the real plot kicks in. The scene that actually rekindles the audience's attention is the one we've been watching for months: the couple stroke each other in front of a mirror while Chris Isaak's perfect "Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing" messes with the tone of the moment. Though Kidman and Cruise don't have sex on-screen (what a tease!), the short scene is wonderful because it is so loaded. Combine Kidman's glances into the mirror, her height advantage over Cruise...
...previous summer. Speaking even slower than the night before (now she's on pot!), Kidman tries to chew the scenery and ends up choking bigtime. Her monologue should be the key to the movie--a thorough exploration of how unrealized emotions can inspire the most potent jealousy--and yet Kubrick has Alice on marijuana before she begins her speech. Why? Why cheapen the moment? In Schnitzler's novel, Alice is perfectly lucid; she virtually relives her erotic desires for the sailor as she recounts her lust. In the film, the exchange isn't balanced; Alice isn't rational, the emotions...
Schnitzler's fascinating account of an opulent palace of sex and mirthful ritual has been turned into much the opposite. True, most critics and fans have raved about Jocelyn Pook's spooky score, the beautiful costuming, the fantastic lighting and the haunting ceremony. The problem, however, is that Kubrick's vision misinterprets Schnitzler's theme: That sex is so deceptive and dangerous because it involves a playout of fantasy. That reality only kicks in once sex is over. Yet, in Kubrick's orgy scene, the mood is menacing from the outset. This isn't erotic sex--this is a museum...