[58][59] The positive review in Combustible Celluloid describes it as an erotic thriller upon first viewing, but actually a "complex story about marriage and sexuality". Taking place in Zieglers pool room, the back and forth between the two men is more intense than any game of pool. If you have Second Life installed on your computer, teleport in and start exploring! In short, although Kubrick never actually names the secret society infiltrated by Bill, there are enough clues to understand what kind of club he is referring to. Illuminati. Here is an excerpt from Wikipedia. In celebration of what the famed director means both to the medium and to the pod as well, this episode goes even further into an auteurist discussion than past episodes, as they disentangle its focused cinematography, layered performances, and to what degree this film acts a skeleton key to the rest of the man's oeuvre!Adam Nayman and Manuela Lazic'sRingerConversation - Make the Case: Eyes Wide Shut Is Actually a Comedy, and the Best Film of 1999, The Second Password - EYES WIDE SHUT (1999). 21st Dec, 2021. This is a great Fan Theory, and it makes perfect sense. Cate Blanchett Is Wary of 'Reductive' Comparisons Between 'TR' and 'Carol' Santa Barbara Launches with Oscar Tributes, from Cate Blanchett and Colin Farrell to Angela Bassett Do you mind telling me what kind of f-cking charade ends with someone turning up dead?. The interior scenes of the party were shot at Elveden Hall, a private house in the UK designed to look like an Indian palace. Magic circles is a concept used in ritual magic during invocations. Nick describes a masked orgy in a mansion outside New York City where he'll play piano blindfolded. My theory is that the password given to Nick was the password assigned to the "musician" for the evening. Although details are vague regarding that elite club, they were known for performing elementary Satanic rites as a prelude to their nights of fornication. [55] As Kidman was nervous about doing nude scenes, Kubrick stated she could bring music to liven up. In the movie, when Bill enters the mansion, he mixes with a crowd of masked people silently watching the ritual. The film topped the week-end box office, with $21.7million from 2,411 screens. I don't think there's a chance that was the movie he had in mind, or the music track and a lot of other things. That evening, Bill tries to call Marion, but hangs up when her fianc answers. Station 19 (2018) - S02E02 Under the Surface. However, Kubrick left a few clues hinting at his identity and his relationship with Amanda. Eyes Wide Shut Jump to Edit Summaries A Manhattan doctor embarks on a bizarre, night-long odyssey after his wife's admission of unfulfilled longing. Hunter elaborates on his criticism, and states that "Kubrick is annoyingly offhand while at the same time grindingly pedantic; plot points are made over and over again, things are explained till the dawn threatens to break in the east, and the movie stumbles along at a glacial pace". Though there is a lot of full frontal nudity + the orgy scene which lasts for 4 minutes, there is a meaning, it's just very hard to find. [93], Eyes Wide Shut received generally positive reviews from critics. Roger Ebert heavily criticized the technique of using digital images to mask the action. TV spots featured both Isaak and Ligeti's music from the soundtrack, while revealing little about the movie's plot. [91] The film's wide opening occurred the following week-end, and topped the U.K. charts with 1,189,672. The second part of this series of articles on Eyes Wide Shut takes a closer look at the elite secret society discovered by the film's main character, Bill Harford, and how it resembles real life organizations. Most importantly, he is telling his viewers: These societies still exist and they are more powerful than ever. When Bill mentions Amanda, Ziegler gets more defensive and replies: She was a hooker meaning that she was a Beta slave that could be easily disposed of. Stanley was absolutely thrilled with the film. Stanley had sent over the cut he considered done to us, Tom and I watched it in New York and then he died. [5] Kubrick considered casting both Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger as Bill Harford and Alice Harford. Ziegler, therefore, admits that people attending the ritual were high-level, well-known and powerful people. Who is Amanda Curran? No, there was no cheating because there was no us. [48], Pook was hired after choreographer Yolande Snaith rehearsed the masked ball orgy scene using Pook's composition "Backwards Priests" which features a Romanian Orthodox Divine Liturgy recorded in a church in Baia Mare, played backwards as a reference track. The building used to film the outside scene is Mentmore Towers in the UK. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. UNCENSORED! After leaving Marion's, Bill meets a prostitute named Domino. The shoot went on for much longer than expected; the actress Vinessa Shaw was initially contracted for two weeks but ended up working for two months[30] whilst the actor Alan Cumming, who appears in one scene as a hotel clerk, auditioned six times before the filming process. The second half of Eyes Wide Shut sees Bill being given ominous warnings from this secret society, and he can't seem to find his mask from the party. May I have the password please? We ultimately learn that it was Amanda, the girl that was passed out in Zieglers bathroom. Freedom is slavery. It's available on Vigilant Citizen (VC) addresses secret society ritual in second article - pretty interesting stuff. Bill offers money to rent a costume from Milich's shop, where he finds Milich's daughter with two men. [64] Writing in TV Guide, Maitland McDonagh writes "No one familiar with the cold precision of Kubrick's work will be surprised that this isn't the steamy erotic thriller a synopsis (or the ads) might suggest. There was no second password, that was a trick question. The film follows the sexually charged adventures of Dr. Bill Harford, who is shocked when his wife, Alice, reveals that . Something curious happened in New York around Christmastime 2016. [105] Many critics, such as Manohla Dargis of LA Weekly, found the prolific orgy scene to be "banal" and "surprisingly tame". A UFO appears in front of you, and an alien walks out, they tell you that you can either choose to stay on earth, or take the opportunity to travel the universe and learn it's secrets. Based on the 1926 novella Traumnovelle (Dream Story) by Arthur Schnitzler, the story is transferred from early 20th-century Vienna to 1990s New York City. After all, Bill is an outsider. For a few weeks, most of the rep houses in the city were screening Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut.The director's final film . [60] High-Def Digest also called it an erotic thriller. [56], The film was described by some reviewers, and partially marketed, as an erotic thriller, a categorization disputed by others. We find out the answer was that there was no second password. He said Cruise and Kidman had their way with him exactly the words he used. . Ziegler claims Nick is safe and that Mandy died from an accidental overdose due to drug addiction. Yarn is the best search for video clips by quote. The thing I remember most about Eyes Wide Shut, beside the great musical choices that were made for the soundtrack, was reading a review of the movie in a newspaper. CENSORED! But the fact he came in a taxi and didn't try to guess a second password which he wasn't even supposed to guess could not reasonably be the reason why he was found out. Who are these aristocrats whose limos take them to secret masked orgies in Long Island mansions? Remember when they smoke weed? He decides to go to Domino's apartment to consummate their affair, but is met by her roommate, Sally. Dreams and the subconscious are powerful, and have the ability to transform our waking lives. Frederic Raphael looks back at Eyes Wide Shut, Depth of field: Stanley Kubrick, film, and the uses of history, "20 Eye-Opening Facts About Eyes Wide Shut", "Eyes Wide Shut: 20 years on, Stanley Kubrick's most notorious film is still shrouded in mystery", "Debunking the Myths Around Eyes Wide Shut, Stanley Kubrick's Final Film", "Cate Blanchett Lent Her 'Warm and Sensual Voice' to Eyes Wide Shut", "Eyes Wide Shut at 15: Inside the Epic, Secretive Film Shoot that Pushed Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman to Their Limits", "Alan Cumming on "Standing Up" to Stanley Kubrick", "13 Facts You May Not Know about Stanley Kubrick's 'Eyes Wide Shut', "Stanley Kubrick's swan song: Eyes wide shut", "Kubrick's Approval Sets Seal on Classical Crossover Success: Pook's Unique Musical Mix", "AHAD Gives Voice to Hindu Sentiments Against Eyes Wide Shut", "15 Years Later, New Details from Kubrick's Secretive Eyes Wide Shut Set", "Erotic thriller Hollywood couple sue over sex claims", "Combustible Celluloid Review Eyes Wide Shut (1999)", "Blu-ray Review: Eyes Wide Shut | High-Def Digest", "Eyes Wide Shut (Blu-ray): DVD Talk Review of the Blu-ray", "What the critics failed to see in Kubrick's last film", Depth of Field: Stanley Kubrick, Film, and the Uses of History, "When you hold a mirror to society it rebels": Katharina Kubrick on Eyes Wide Shut, "ShoWest to Get Quick Glimpse of Kubrick's 'Eyes Wide Shut', "Weekend Box Office: July 1618, 1999 Weekend", "Cahiers du Cinema: Top Ten Lists 19512009", "The Sexy, Scary, Stylish 'Eyes Wide Shut' Is Stanley Kubrick's Final Masterpiece", "Eyes Don't Have It: Kubrick Turgid Finale", "EYES WIDE SHUT What the critics failed to see in Kubrick's last film", "For Movie Folks Who Considered Burning Down The Ratings Board When The Adjustment Was Enuf", "Grotesque Caricature: Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut as the Allegory Of Its Own Reception", "Eyes Wide Shut is French critics' best foreign pic", "Movie Geeks United! The second part of "Eyes Wide Shut" begins with an automobile ride into a dark forest. "Eyes Wide Shut" recognizes how earth-shattering disloyalty can be, even if it just occurs in your mind. However, decisions regarding sound mixing, scoring and color-correction would have necessarily been made without Kubrick's input. Garrett Brown, inventor of the Steadicam, has expressed that he considers Eyes Wide Shut to be an unfinished film: I think Eyes Wide Shut was snatched up by the studio when Stanley died and they just grabbed the highest number Avid edit and ran off as if that was the movie. however, it's possible to argue that they mentioned the taxi as the 'reason' for suspecting him so that they keep their password system secret. [84] The film also appeared on the cover of Time magazine, and on show business programs such as Entertainment Tonight and Access Hollywood. The website's critical consensus reads, "Kubrick's intense study of the human psyche yields an impressive cinematic work. The film's production, at 400 days, holds the Guinness World Record for the longest continuous film shoot. Don't they mention how Harford arrived in a cab and that is what drew suspicion? Eyes Wide Shut Stanley Kubrick Poster. I thought that was self evident. Note that the multi-faced mask on the left which is similar to the one worn at the Royal party above. When Bill learns that his wife has considered cheating on him, he embarks on a strange series of encounters (which I will analyze in the third and final part of this series), eventually ending up in a luxurious house in Long Island where he encounters a large gathering of masked individuals partaking in an occult ritual. If I told you their names Im not gonna tell you their names but if I did, I dont think youd sleep so well.. As a producer I can't fault Kubrick. Find the exact moment in a TV show, movie, or music video you want to share. Even The British Royal Family appears to enjoy the same type of masks and events. Marilyn Monroe). In reality, these elaborate rituals often incorporate real attempts at Black Magick and include real blood sacrifices and other terrible acts. When Alice calls, he pays Domino for a non-sexual encounter and meets Nick at a jazz club. Nelson notes that the sex ritual combines elements of Venetian Carnival and Catholic rites, in particular, the character of "Red Cloak" who simultaneously serves as Grand Inquisitor and King of Carnival. An older Hungarian guest attempts to seduce Alice, while two young models try to seduce Bill. A couple wearing Venetian masks (more specifically female jester and bauta masks) slowly turn towards Bill and nod in a very creepy matter. In the UK, Warners' 'rated 18' [no video altering] 1999 DVD release was in 4:3 full frame aspect ratio, with a note at the beginning that this was as Kubrick intended to be shown [ratio as shot]. It was one of the happiest weekends of his life, right before he died, after he had shown the first cut to Terry, Tom and Nicole. Eyes Wide Shut (8,115) 7.5 2 h 39 min 1999 X-Ray 18+ Tom Cruise plays a doctor who is married to an art curator. The last scene of the movie takes place at a toy store a place full of highly symbolic items (more on it in the next article). By selecting this location, was Kubrick trying to show his audience the real world equivalents to the ultra-elite shown in the movie? Titanic movie stars in their own right, both of them provide a deeply vulnerable exploration of marital infidelity as they navigate the precise and ever-artificial labyrinth of Kubrick's creative process, both on and off set. This script is a transcript that was painstakingly transcribed using the screenplay and/or viewings of Eyes Wide Shut. [9] In Eyes Wide Shut, Frederic Raphael, who is Jewish, wanted to keep the Jewish background of the protagonists, but Kubrick disagreed and removed details that would identify characters as Jewish. If one carefully reads the news article mentioned above, Leon Vitali is the name of the London fashion designer Amanda had an affair with. Location: Brookings, Oregon. That particular Royal event featured masked women who were as NOT dressed as those in the Eyes Wide Shut ritual. [54], The party at Ziegler's house features rearrangements of love songs such as "When I Fall in Love" and "It Had to Be You", used in increasingly ironic ways considering how Alice and Bill flirt with other people in the scene. Common Sense got this film wrong. Nicole Kidman, one of the stars of the film, briefly wrote about the completion of the film and the release of the film being at the same time of John F. Kennedy Jr.'s death from her perspective: There was a lot of interest in Eyes Wide Shut before it was released. Nightingale is blindfolded because the profane cannot witness the occult rituals of the elite. Was Stanley Kubrick trying to warn the world about the occult elite and its depraved ways? "[111], Lee Siegel from Harper's felt that most critics responded mainly to the marketing campaign and did not address the film on its own terms. 27 . [44] The opening title music is Shostakovich's Waltz No. [135] She also discredited Ermey's claims, saying to a user who asked about Kubrick's alleged comments, "[not to] believe that for a second."[136]. #BritneySpears # #EyesWideShut # # #StanleyKubrick #illminati # #edenmedia #fyp #foryou # #party. His wife tells the Dr. how she fantasizes about an other man and he starts to fantasize about other woman. We also saw that the couple was in contact with the upper-echelon of New-York and its decadent ways a world that fascinates Bill, but that has a dark side, one that is kept from the public. [66] Michael Koresky, writing in the 2006 issue of film journal Reverse Shot, writes "this director, who defies expectations at every turn and brings genre to his feet, was setting out to make neither the 'erotic thriller' that the press maintained nor an easily identifiable 'Kubrick film'". But something which really annoys me about the film is something which happens when Bill (Tom Cruise) goes to the Mansion. Find the exact moment in a TV show, movie, or music video you want to share. One recurring piece is the second movement of Gyrgy Ligeti's piano cycle "Musica ricercata". Geoffrey Stanton, Guide to Venetian Carnival Masks. The story, set in and around New York City, follows the sexually charged adventures of Dr. Bill Harford, who . By AnthonyNissly. It is also the first American home video release to feature the uncut version. You can attempt an explanation to all of his other films, but no absolute one is possible for this one. This last concept was imported by British occultist Aleister Crowley and is now at the center of the teachings of various secret societies: Aleister Crowleys connections with Indian Yoga and Tantra were both considerable and complex. [80] Carolin Ruwe, in her book Symbols in Stanley Kubrick's Movie 'Eyes Wide Shut', argues that the mask is the prime symbol of the film. [13] Mario Falsetto, on the other hand, notes that Christmas lights allow Kubrick to employ some of his distinct methods of shooting including using source location lighting, as he also did in Barry Lyndon. Bill aids in Mandy's recovery. Marion: In one of the last scenes? This aspect was retained in the film's original screenplay,[15] but was deleted in the filmed version. Flash back to the time that Eyes Wide Shut was being filmed (circa 1998-1999). [83] The first footage was shown to theater owners attending the 1999 ShoWest convention in Las Vegas. The film's depiction of sexual depravity and amorality could easily venture into the realm of camp in the hands of a lesser filmmaker, but Kubrick depicts primal evil in a way that somehow makes it seem both new and deeply terrifying. But the weekend it came out, July 16, 1999, was the death of JFK Jr., his wife and her sister a black, black weekend. One guess I had was that Nick was trying to set him up all along, as part of a blood sacrifice. We indeed learn that Amanda was emotionally troubled as a teen and underwent treatments (a code word for MK Programming perhaps? Eyes Wide Shut: What is the password? They suggest the kind of hotel where each room is a scaled-down version of the queen's . The Priest then replies Are you sure you understand what youre taking upon yourself in doing this? This implies that she will be repeatedly abused and then sacrificed. Easily move forward or backward to get to the perfect clip. The uncut version has since been released in DVD, HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats. 26/07/2015. They could have turned him back; they chose to let him in, presumably to find out how their security had been breached. [45] Kubrick originally intended to feature "Im Treibhaus" from Wagner's Wesendonck Lieder, but the director eventually replaced it with Ligeti's tune feeling Wagner's song was "too beautiful". Martin P. Starr, Aleister Crowley and Western Esotericism. This alteration antagonized both film critics and cinephiles,[137] who argued that Kubrick had never been shy about ratings (A Clockwork Orange was originally given an X-rating). [67] DVD Talk similarly dissociates the film from this genre. Pook ended up composing and recording four pieces of music, many times based on her previous work, totaling 24 minutes. In the novella, the party (which is sparsely attended) uses "Denmark" as the password for entrance; that is significant in that Albertina had her infatuation with her soldier in Denmark. Since then, Venetian masks have been used in elite circles and have somewhat become a symbol of its dark occult philosophy. Though Warner Bros. insisted that Kubrick had turned in his final cut before his death, the film was still in the final stages of post-production, which was therefore completed by the studio in collaboration with Kubrick's estate. 23.976. that the dramatic climax of the novella is actually Albertina's dream, and the film has shifted the focus to Bill's visit to the secret society's orgy, whose content is more shocking in the film. Derived from a Beethoven opera, it was a unique password just for him. "[73] Noting that Kubrick has shown viewers the dark side of Christmas consumerism, Louise Kaplan states that the film illustrates ways in which the "material reality of money" is shown replacing the spiritual values of Christmas, charity, and compassion. Though the precise origin of the mask-wearing tradition cant be known for certain, the prevailing theory goes something like this: beginning in the Italian Renaissance, Venice was an extremely wealthy and powerful merchant empire. He gains entry but he gets found out later he's an intruder. Why is the password Fidelio? and similar secret societies still partake in rituals involving physical energy as it is perceived to be a way to attain a state of enlightenment.