Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

A New York City doctor, who is married to an art curator, pushes himself on a harrowing and dangerous night-long odyssey of sexual and moral discovery after his wife admits that she once almost cheated on him.

Director:

Stanley Kubrick

Writers:

Stanley Kubrick (screenplay), Frederic Raphael (screenplay),

Stars:

Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Sydney Pollack

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 5 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Cruise	...	Dr. William Harford
Nicole Kidman	...	Alice Harford
Madison Eginton	...	Helena Harford
Jackie Sawiris	...	Roz
Sydney Pollack	...	Victor Ziegler
Leslie Lowe	...	Illona Ziegler
Peter Benson	...	Bandleader
Todd Field	...	Nick Nightingale
Michael Doven	...	Ziegler's Secretary
Sky du Mont	...	Sandor Szavost (as Sky Dumont)
Louise J. Taylor	...	Gayle (as Louise Taylor)
Stewart Thorndike	...	Nuala
Randall Paul	...	Harris
Julienne Davis	...	Mandy
Lisa Leone	...	Lisa

Storyline

A doctor becomes obsessed with having a sexual encounter after his wife admits to having sexual fantasies about a man she met and chastising him for dishonesty in not admitting to his own fantasies. This sets him off into unfulfilled encounters with a dead patient's daughter and a hooker. But when he visits a nightclub, where a pianist friend Nick Nightingale is playing, he learns about a secret sexual group and decides to attend one of their congregations. However, he quickly learns he is in well over his head and finds he and his family are threatened.

---

Plot Keywords:

party | patient | sexual fantasy | doctor | city | 

---

Taglines:

Cruise. Kidman. Kubrick.

---

Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content, nudity, language and some drug-related material

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros. [us]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 July 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

EWS

Filming Locations:

Berners Street, Fitzrovia, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$65,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£1,189,672 (UK) (10 September 1999)

Gross:

£5,065,520 (UK) (22 October 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hobby Films, Pole Star, Stanley Kubrick Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

159 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was "pushed" two stops in processing, thus enabling Stanley Kubrick to film using existing source lighting (table lamps, overhead lights, etc.) whenever possible. The light level remained low even when lighting had to be supplemented with Lowell or Chinese paper ball lamps as fill or key lights.

---

Goofs

When Bill goes to the Sonata Jazz Club, outside of the club are pictures of the four guys in the band with their names. It lists Larry McVay as the drummer and Kip Fleming as the bassist. But inside the club, after the band is done playing, Nick (the piano player) introduces the band, and says, "Larry McVay on bass and Kip Fleming on drums."

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Dr. Bill Harford: Honey, have you seen my wallet?
Alice Harford: Isn't it on the bedside table?
Dr. Bill Harford: Now listen, you know we're running a little late.
Alice Harford: I know. How do I look?
Dr. Bill Harford: Perfect.
Alice Harford: Is my hair okay?
Dr. Bill Harford: It's great
Alice Harford: You're not even looking at it.
Dr. Bill Harford: It's beautiful. You always look beautiful.

---

Crazy Credits

Special thanks to the staff of Hamleys of London.

---

Connections

Spoofed in Saturday Night Live: Jennifer Aniston/Sting (1999)

---

Soundtracks

"Old Fashioned Way"
(1953)
Performed by The Victor Silvester Orchestra
Courtesy of Castle Copyrights Ltd
Music by Georges Garvarentz
Lyrics by Charles Aznavour
Published by Chappell Aznavour Ltd

User Reviews

An impressive film with a bad marketing campaign

Eyes Wide Shut is ill-suited for the summer movie corridor. It has no explosions, no running, shouting, or a single gunshot. What it has are long scenes in which characters talk to one another. Slowly and carefully. The problem is that the film is marketed as having white-hot sex scenes and plenty of gratuitous nudity, while it has neither. There is plenty of naked flesh, don't get me wrong, but in exactly the opposite way that the ads make it appear. This is not a movie about being sexy and naked -- it's a movie about how flesh is just another part of being human, so what is all the fuss about? The marketing campaign is misleading, and led to disappointment in the audience that I saw the movie with, who were just looking for some skin.

The tension in the plot and the issues that the film discusses aren't telegraphed to the audience, they're hinted at in the dialog. There is no neat resolution at the end, life simply goes on. You may watch the whole film and think "that wasn't about anything!" Then think about what you've seen and realize it has a great deal to say.

The film is a meditation on sexuality and how it relates to marriage, death, and money. It's a fascinating commentary on modern life, and a rare movie that dares to examine sex as impassionately as any other issue.

The directing and cinematography alone would be worth the price of admission without the social commentary. The sets are an integral part of the movie; they breathe and glow and live. Kubrick was a master director, and he uses long shots and dissolves to great effect. Cruise and Kidman are at their best, and the supporting cast is also strong. It's Kubrick's magic work with the camera that holds the film together.

All in all, definitely worth seeing for the un-uptight. It's possible to watch this film and actually think about it for hours afterward. That's something you won't get with the Wild, Wild West.