I’ve only sat down and watched Eyes Wide Shut all the way through one time, when it came out in 1999. I’ve seen parts of it since then, but I should probably do a real rewatch at some point. I wasn’t a fan of it back then, but I wonder if I would appreciate it more now, especially given that it was Stanley Kubrick’s last film. It’s also the film which changed Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman’s whole situation, although one could make the same argument about Moulin Rouge too. Anyway, Eyes Wide Shut celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. I wonder if Tom will do anything to mark the occasion? Surprisingly, Nicole Kidman agreed to an LA Times interview, all about the film, Tom, Stanley Kubrick and more. Some highlights:

It took two years to film: “I would have stayed a third year. Does that mean I’m crazy?”

The famous scene where she/Alice smokes a joint in bed evolved over weeks of talking & rehearsing: “Just a lot of talking. When Tom and I first started with Stanley, it was at his home, and we didn’t even go over to the sets at Pinewood [Studios]. Six, eight weeks passed, and we’re wondering, “Are we ever going to start?” And we just wouldn’t start. We were getting comfortable with each other, comfortable enough to throw out ideas. For that scene, we improvised the beginning of it through the rehearsals.

Whether she thought Kubrick was mining Tom & Nicole’s real marriage: “I suppose he was mining it. There were ideas he was interested in. He’d ask a lot of questions. But he had a strong sense of the story he was telling. I do remember him saying, “Triangles are hard. You have to tread carefully when it’s a triangle.” Because one person could feel ganged up on. But he was aware of that and knew how to manage us.

What part of Nicole is in Alice: “My boldness. I’m quite up-front and Alice becomes quite up-front, particularly when she was stoned … although that wasn’t me when I was stoned. I was just naturally like that. Up-front.

On Kubrick: “The great thing about him is that he told us, “Don’t put me on a pedestal.” That’s the No. 1 rule. Because when we came to his house, we were like, “Oh, my God. The great Stanley Kubrick.” And that kind of thinking hinders the creative process. He didn’t want sycophants. He told us to throw ideas out. And everyone has to wait at least 10 seconds before they say no to an idea. I heard that, and I’m in my 20s, and I’m like, “OK. It’s on.” It was experimental, like making student films in Australia.

The famous dress scene: “I don’t know how he would get [what he wanted]. But in that scene, I suppose that was why he cast me. That mischief, that provocative nature, he found that out and it got more imbued into Alice. The scene where I drop the dress … that was me. That wasn’t written. That was my dress from my closet. “This is how I take off the dress, Stanley.” Because I had a lot of clothes, we weren’t paying to buy clothes. And Stanley had come over and I was showing him all these beautiful dresses. That’s how that happened.”

She has the last line in Kubrick’s final film: “And it’s a pretty good word. [Laughs.] And that came out of the rehearsal process too. When you watch it, it’s great because it’s a base, primal thing to do. But I’ve never thought of that. I have the last line in the final Stanley Kubrick movie. No one has ever said that to me. That’s a career in itself. I’ll take it.”

What people ask her about ‘Eyes Wide Shut’: “They want to know what it was like to spend that much time making it, which I understand. It was two years of our lives! [Laughs.] I remember Sydney Pollack when he arrived, telling us, “I’m only going to be here for about three days. And it seems like we got the scene today.” And Tom and I just looked at each other, going, “Mmm-hmmm. Sure, Sydney.”

‘Eyes Wide Shut’ is a Christmas movie: “Sheesh. That’s an odd Christmas movie! [Laughs.] Well, there’s so many layers to all of his films, which is why we keep coming back to them.

[From The LA Times]

What struck me is that her memories of making the film are entirely positive, and she repeatedly speaks warmly of Tom and their life together making the film. It honestly sounds like that was one of the happiest experiences of her life, practically living in a small set trailer with Tom, cooking pasta with Sydney Pollack and working with Kubrick. She also says that she believes that the edit of the film which was released in theaters was the one Kubrick wanted. There’s always been some debate about that, so it’s nice that Nicole is backing up the idea that this was really Kubrick’s vision.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, UPPA/Photoshot Photo,Look Press Agency/Look Press / Avalon.