While 2007 has been lauded as (thus far) the banner year of the decade, I submit that 1999 is the banner year of the 1990s for quality and experimental cinema. Although many would argue for 1994 they’d be wrong – Pulp Fiction, Natural Born Killers, Ed Wood, Forrest Gump, The Double Life of Veronique and The New Nightmare are simply not up to the volume of great films released in 1999. Over the whole of August (hopefully with more frequency than I’ve been maintaining this column) I aim to hit as many of these as possible and highlight the film and a containing scene. It is notable that more than any other year in the 50+ entries here, there are already two 1999 films done: Magnolia (Finite Focus here) and Ravenous (Finite Focus here).
To kick things off, here is a short tease of the ‘aristocratic orgy’ from Eyes Wide Shut. Stanley Kubrick‘s final film is one of his most elusive. It’s bombastic central set-piece is ludicrous. Absolutely ludicrous. Especially compared with the delicate set-up and conclusion of the film. I loved this film upon first viewing (and that was the censored ‘digitally inserted people’ version) as the rich color palette, score, and other technical virtuosity was overwhelming. Others wrote it off as a colossal failure. But over the past near-decade, I’ve viewed the thing several times and I keep shifting in opinion on the film. The second time, I watched it – upon its 2001 DVD release – I found the film laboured, silly (particularly the orgy, and scenes involving the costume rental) and meta-silly in the fact that the film seems completely designed to make Tom Cruise look like a colossal goof. Yet, a few years on, upon the recent release of the black Kubrick box, it was the first film I watched, and I found the thing mesmerizing, rich is class and gender politics, and amusing that the final word of dialogue from Kubrick‘s long and full career is “Fuck.” Cut to a recent viewing (this week in fact) of the film again. The below scene was a bit of a deal breaker this time around. Unless we are aiming for the mansion sequence being ‘just in his head,’ it is a drastic (if interesting) shift in tone. And it is too facile and makes no sense in the boundaries of the film. The ‘backwards soundtrack,’ the fact that so many people are involved and aware of what is going on is too much to buy literally, yet the rest of the film (costume return excepted) is so grounded in reality, particularly Sydney Pollack‘s lengthy scene which is like the harsh morning hangover to a previous nights fever-dream.
The incense and chanting sequence is the lynch pin of taking the film seriously, or writing the film off as a lesser Kubrick effort. And the bombastic mid-film set-piece remains the films greatest draw and weakest link. All that being said, I’m not an advocate of taking films literally, or railing against things that do not make sense. I simply find Eyes Wide Shut fascinating in that my feelings toward the film seem to change every time I view it. Probably the sign of a masterpiece, really.
