Rating: Summary: OK movie, but Kubrick's BEST? Not even! Review: Did I watch a different movie than everybody else? Yes, Tom Cruise was great in it and I'd say so was Nicole Kidman. But the story doesn't hold a candle to some of his other masterpieces (Dr.Strangelove or 2001). Some person said there were a lot of climactic scenes, but that person probably read Ebert's review that each scene had an arc of its own. Seen at its whole, it's an interesting movie about how easy it is to get into adultery or sexual perversion, while celebrating marriage! Weird. Good movie, but would I watch it again? No. Now, if you want to watch a movie for its brilliance over and over again, watch Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove.
Rating: Summary: The censored for dumb Americans version Review: I'd hoped that the DVD would be the international cut, or (better yet) would take advantage of the ability of the DVD format to allow the user to select alternate edits. That way we could see the film as Kubrick intended. But no, apparently we just get the same censored version that played in US theaters, while the rest of the world gets Kubrick's original version.So despite it being a great film, I can't really give the US release of the DVD (or VHS) a great rating.
Rating: Summary: Stanley Kubrick's True Masterpiece Review: Towards the end of this past summer, I developed an interest in the films of Stanley Kubrick. Towards the end of August, the film (which quickly vanished from theaters, after the nasty critical reviews) was only playing in one local theater and was about to go out. I pleaded with my older brother to take me to see it (I, unfortunatly, had not yet obtained my driver's license -- I'm 17). He grudgingly agreed and was beaming when we walked out of the theater. What can I say? As this was Stanley Kubrick's last film, I'm glad that he decided to go out with a bang. The story is suspenseful and mysterious, made all the better my the brilliant acting and casting (Tom Cruise should get an Oscar nomination for this, in addition to his "Magnolia" nomination). Heightening the surrealistic feel of the movie is the brilliant camerawork and cinematography, which, in my opinion, is his best since the god-awful "Clockwork Orange". It's a real shame that critics dumped on this movie (they claim it lacked "Kubrick's genius") and it never received the attention that it so rightly deserved. Though it's out of theaters now, I strongly urge you to give this film a chance when it comes out on video and DVD. It runs about two and a half hours, but it's worth it. In fact, when it's done, you're going to wish it was longer.
Rating: Summary: Eyes wide open to our feelings reality. Review: Don't close your eyes to this motion picture. Eyes Wide Shut really deserves your attention. Not just because this is the last production by director Stanley Kubrick, but due to the fact that Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey) really did a great motion picture. Eyes Wide Shut is an human odyssey that explores the psychological roots of the human feelings, concerning a very delicate subject, which is the treason. The eroticism present in the movie is not gratuitous. There is a purpose to be there and the purpose is to make us think about many things that surround our lives. The movie constantly gives us something to think about. And there is a lot of time to think since the movie is very long, sometimes tedious. But nothing that we can not tolerate. Moreover, Kubrick presents us a natural vision from one of the biggest myths of the human kind: the sex. In Eyes Wide Shut the human sexuality is treated with extremely naturalness. With such great leading performances by Tom Cruise and his wife, the actress Nicole Kidman, and such well done supporting performances, superb art direction and costume design, excellent soundtrack, not to mention, of course, the direction, it seems that Kubrick's last piece of art is a true masterpiece to be added to his filmography. And think about the possibility of the whole story to be nothing but a dream and Eyes Wide Shut will make even more sense. So, keep your eyes wide open.
Rating: Summary: Yet another masterpiece from the greatest director ever. Review: This movie has it all, dazzling cinematography, mysterious storyline, brilliant photography and, of course, masterful directing. I believe that this movie is just about sex. Now, at first that may seem elementary, but this movie covers virtually all sexual aspects and influences on are lives, no matter how different they may be. I think it is telling us that we are indeed that moral-less society that so many of us fear that we have become. One mans interpratation. A beautiful final film, I only wish he could have lived to direct AI. I believe he had very special things in mind for that idea...
Rating: Summary: THIS FILM WAS BRILLIANTLY DIRECTED BY A BRILLIANT DIRECTOR! Review: This was a great film. Stanley Kubrick is probably the only person in the world who could take an orgy sequence and make that seem less interesting than what the main character is doing. Tom Cruise was excellent in this film. So was Nicole. The cast was brilliantly selected. But I must say, the key to this film being so great was the script by Kubrick and Frederic Raphael. If there is any movie that Kubrick should receive a posthumous award for Best Director and Best Picture, it should be this film. He deserved it before with such classics as A Clockwork Orange and 2001, but he really deserves it now especially after all he's done to make the MPAA comfortable. He should also receive it because of his dedication to the project and how he handled the publicity, as opposed to all the other people who like to stand in the limelight of the publicity. This movie deserves the best. It's an outstanding film.
Rating: Summary: Stanley Kubrick's best film...An art of the highest quality Review: Eyes Wide Shut is an instant classic...it's a Stanley Kubrick masterpiece and will stand the test of time. Never have I seen a film with such great music, performances, climatic scenes, and the film is also the most thought provoking this critic ever saw! Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman are excellent...but this film's strongest point is Kubrick's powerful and present direction. It's an extraodinary film that can be watch again and again. You can analyze the story and emotions and plot just like a great novel...even better than a novel. Don't miss this one! Every shot is like a great painting...it's beautiful! An acidic tour-de-force!
Rating: Summary: KUBRICK'S FINAL MASTERPIECE Review: A hauntingly beautiful film that gives you the feeling of being trapped inside of a dream and a nightmare at the same time.Tom Cruise and especially Nicole Kidman are excellent,and it contains some of Kubrick's most spellbinding set pieces.A brilliant final chapter to the master film maker's career.
Rating: Summary: My Take on Stanley Kubrick's final film.... Review: What angered me at first was how many people wanted to watch this movie only to stare at Nicole Kidman's naked chest and rear end, or believed that Stanley Kubrick was a "weirdo" or a "freak" for creating "such a perverted movie." But what really angered me was how may people expected "Eyes Wide Shut" to be a pornographic movie and how many people have dismissed it for it's subtle nature, "lack of visuals", and time length. The thing is, as a real film viewer, you need to look pass that and really watch the film carefully to understand the message it tries to give. "Eyes Wide Shut" is one of the most unforgetable movies I have ever seen in the theater and will, as far as I'm concerned, satisfy most Kubrick fans. I admit, the performances by Cruise and Kidman were less than outstanding in this film, but what really stands out is it's visually stunning moments(the couple's bedroom, the sex scene by the mirror, the Long Island mansion/sex cult scene) and the message it brings out about sex, jealousy, and infidelity. Do not depend on the bad reviews you hear or read about this film. Watch the movie, and judge for yourself. It will be possible that you will not enjoy this film, but it will leave you with an impression that will stay with you for days.
Rating: Summary: a difficult but rewarding master work Review: kubrick was and remains the most 'celebrated' of cinemas avant gardists. the fact that he had a comfortable carte blanche /big budget status tends to distract from his whole worth. kubrick employs numerous layers of hard to decipher viuals. there are three very striking parallel scenes in eyes wide shut. we first see dr cruise asssisting an overdosed naked hooker. we then see him at the death bed of a friend. the dead mans daughter then makes a sexual advance on cruise. lastly, towards the end of the film we see cruise in the morgue, looking intensely at the dead hooker. all these scenes reek of the paintings of munch. the masqued ball is straight out of beethovens opera fidelio and an inversion of it. when this film was released most mainstream critics pounced on it. this is not a movie in the traditional sense. it is a 'motion picture', an opera, a series of paintings, and a subdued pornographic art film. the only difference in the european version and the american version is the digital figures placed strategically in the masked ball orgy scene. upon seeing the missing sex scenes one wonders why the need to cover them. theyre simulated and quite soft core. i advise the european version if only to have kubricks intention. overall this remains a challenging swan song to a challenging body of work from stanley kubrick, cinemas darling avant garde boogey man
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