A Stanley Kubrick Retrospective: ‘Eyes Wide Shut’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

One of the many reasons I’m such a fan of cinema, is the sheer fact that anything and everything a filmmaker puts onto the screen, is open to interpretation. We all find something special when we settle in to watch a movie and while most of us can come to a consensus on what some films generally stand for, it is the ones that continue to confound us that lead to multiple viewings and constant debate and well, this is on my mind today because the final motion picture that Stanley Kubrick ever brought to the silver screen is one that cinema-philes have poured over for nearly twenty years, when it comes to its overall meaning.
 
Because Eyes Wide Shut is truly a fascinating masterpiece, and a fine, yet unexpected end to a storied career and what makes this film so intriguing is the fact that it deals with so many themes and notions that it is difficult to pin down what Stanley wanted to explore in this story, but many firmly believe that is nothing more than an erotic thriller, one that dove deeply into human sexuality and there is in fact, some credence to this analysis. After all, sex is everywhere in this film. It’s on just about every single character’s minds in this story, and the events at the mansion hang heavy over this film since it serves as the penultimate visual when it comes to what these characters desire and it features some odd and twisted and dangerous moments when it comes to sexuality, adding weight to the thriller aspect.
 
But, while it is inherently clear that sexuality is a big-time theme in this film, it stands for different concepts in my mind. Because what I took away from this story is that sexuality and our desires are things that we are in fact still ashamed of, despite how far we’ve come from a progressive standpoint as evidenced by how everyone in this tale works to keep those things a secret. Yet the story was also quick to point out that finding someone else attractive or finding something erotic are natural in their own right, and it can only cause harm if it is going to hurt ourselves or others, like a spouse or significant other, and that it is healthy to explore our libido. But the film also points out the darker side to sexuality as well in that some desires are not healthy in the slightest, and should indeed be shunned, and the best example of that comes about by way of the storyline involving the Rainbow Rental shop owner and his daughter and I would imagine this was included to simply show us that some people cannot resist their desires, regardless of how twisted they may be. 

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​However, while that is plenty to chew upon in this tale, there are plenty more themes to explore in this story, such as the notions of how nothing is ever quite what it seems in life or that some things don’t work out the way we expect them to. Because plenty of characters end up surprising us in this tale when it comes to what they stand for and what they desire, and for that matter, the latter concept is applied to the sexual themes as well since William Harford’s romanticized attempt to have an affair, something that is often portrayed as an easy feat to accomplish in film and television and the written word, ends up falling flat since there is an honest awkwardness surrounding his repeated attempts to find a lover, the kind that remind us of our pratfalls in such matters and perhaps what impresses me the most about this film is the fact that it offers one more important theme to explore; how we are so incredibly insecure when it comes to relationships.
 
All of that is explored by way of William (played brilliantly by Tom Cruise), our main character, since his entire journey into a world of desire is predicated by the fact that his wife has sexual fantasies and dreams that don’t involve him and rather than potentially acknowledge the fact that this happens, William is rattled badly by this admission from his wife, to the point where it is inherently clear that he feels inadequate as both a lover and a husband and that the only way to seemingly repair his fragile ego is to have an affair and feel desired and loved by a woman, only to find himself in what he believes to be a web of intrigue which also relates to insecurity as well. For this strange sex group he stumbles upon is quite worried about having their proclivities exposed and they pretend as though they’ll do anything to keep such matters a secret.
 
In the end however, Kubrick’s career truly ended as it started, by exploring who we are as a species. But the difference here from the first film he dug into such matters with, Dr. Strangelove, is how this particular tale is a far more intimate affair, one that truly makes use of the characters to explore everything he wanted to as opposed to grander concepts and really when all is said and done, this really is a brilliant motion picture. For it truly digs into matters that so many find taboo, and it doesn’t offer any particular message to the audience, or a solution to modern mankind’s problems with sex. It just reminds us of where we stand in this day and age and it’s up to us as to whether or not we accept sexuality for what it is and really, that’s precisely what Stanley achieved over the course of his storied career, he made us think about our world and our society and that’s quite frankly, quite the gift to give moviegoers…

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