Eyes Wide Shut (1999)

Like I said in my review of Barry Lyndon, this year, I’ve filled in a lot of holes in the Kubrick filmography. This may be the best film I’ve seen all year. There wasn’t a frame in the whole two and a half hour runtime that didn’t enthrall me. I’ll start at the performances, and I don’t think there is a bad one in this whole film. Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman deliver so much emotional energy in every scene. The entire cast of secondary and tertiary characters enhance the scenes where Cruise is exploring the city. The technical prowess of Kubrick at the end of his career is on display with beautiful shot composition and lighting. Worldbuilding is a buzzword used a lot in works of fantasy and fiction, but I think it applies here. Kubrick gives us all these little hints of the seedy sex-fueled underbelly of New York. Each element lulls you into a state where we can accept the over the top sequences that score the last act of the film. The score is exceptional. Some tracks will stick in your mind for weeks. I would recommend to anyone who has the time to watch, literally anyone.