Sorry, been busy writing by day and having my own nightly Stanley Kubrick retrospective. Already made it through Dr Strangelove and Barry Lyndon, moving on to Eyes Wide Shut today, a film which I have to admit I didn't like on initial release and have been resistant to revisit ever since. That said, I'm prepared to give it another go and hopefully admit I was wrong.
I've always been a huge fan, but was spurred into rewatching his films again by a comment from Sam Mendes in answer to a question in the 20th anniversary issue of Empire in which he said he often watches a Kubrick before shooting, to remind himself how few shots you need to make a great movie. Too true.
3 comments:
i have yet to see Barry Lyndon. it frustrates me to no end. as for eyes wide shut? ugh. i don't know. i've watched it twice (with the same intent you had. re: maybe i just didn't GET it the first time) but it just doesn't FEEL like a Kubrick movie. maybe it's the sex. i've always felt that Kubrick films were about the tiny details and beautiful framing (and acting) - with eyes... i just don't SEE that. the "superstar" cast is OKAY. the shots, as you mentioned, change too quickly. the story barrels along and just boobs boobs boobs i'm a doctor here's half a hundred haunting piano what's the SECOND password. at no time was i WRAPPED up in it.
in the end, i just didn't care what happened to the characters and that, to me, is NOT a Kubrick movie.
in my humble opinion, of course.
ps: welcome back, as temporary as it may be.
Barry Lyndon is extraordinary. EWS was better than I'd remembered but not by much. All the issues I had with it initially were still present and correct — Kidman's embarrassing attempt at playing drunk and stoned; the amount of boobs which felt a tad gratuitous to me, particularly the scene in the doctor's office — but I have to admit found the film cast more of spell over me this time around, there are a few remarkable shots, the party scene at Pollack's house reminded me of parts of The Shining and... that's about it.
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