Eyes Wide Shut is a erotic mystery psychological drama film directed, produced, and co-written by Stanley Kubrick. The plot centers on a doctor Tom Cruise who is shocked when his wife Nicole Kidman reveals that she had contemplated having an affair 12 months earlier. He then embarks on a night-long adventure, during which he infiltrates a masked orgy of an unnamed secret society. Kubrick obtained the filming rights for Dream Story in the s, considering it a perfect text for a film adaptation about sexual relations.
He revived the project in the s when he hired writer Frederic Raphael to help him with the adaptation. The film, which was mostly shot in England, apart from some exterior establishing shots , includes a detailed recreation of exterior Greenwich Village street scenes made at Pinewood Studios. The film's production, at days, holds the Guinness World Record for the longest continuous film shoot. Kubrick died of a heart attack six days after showing the final cut of Eyes Wide Shut to Warner Bros.
He reportedly considered it his "greatest contribution to the art of cinema". This version was premiered on July 13, , before being released on July 16, to generally positive but polarized reviews from critics. At a Christmas party hosted by Bill's patient, Victor Ziegler, Bill reconnects with his former medical school classmate, Nick Nightingale, now a professional pianist. Meanwhile, an older Hungarian guest attempts to seduce Alice, while two young models try to seduce Bill.
Ziegler interrupts Bill's flirtation to handle an emergency involving Mandy, a young woman who overdosed during sex with him. Bill helps stabilize Mandy. The following night, Bill and Alice smoke marijuana and discuss their unfulfilled desires.
Bill dismisses the idea of Alice being unfaithful, believing women to be naturally loyal. However, Alice shocks him by confessing to fantasizing about a naval officer she met on vacation, even considering leaving Bill and Helena for him. Bill resists and leaves. Wandering the city, Bill meets a prostitute named Domino.
