Some pictures of the Criterion Collection 4K blu-ray set and its contents for Stanley Kubrick’s ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ (1999) starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. This was the director’s last project and he passed away shortly before the film’s release.

Although my memory of the actual experience is rather murky because it was a lifetime ago, Eyes Wide Shut is a rather special movie to me because it was my first ever theatrical cinematic experience in the US, where I watched the film in Los Angeles when I was there visiting Siggraph ( a big CGI convention ).

I was a clueless teenager then and couldn’t make heads or tails about the very adult themes of jealousy, desire, betrayal and guilt, and what I remember most vividly was the extremely rowdy cinema crowd as well as the abysmally filthy condition of the cinema. It was certainly a very eye-opening experience for me.

All that said, my subsequent viewings over the years have made me appreciate the film much more as I grew older and perhaps more mature, and so I was keen to pick it up on 4K UHD.

This 3 disc Criterion releases includes a 4K UHD presentation as well as a regular SD blu-ray, plus an additional SD blu-ray packed full of supplementary materials. I’ll talk a little more about the picture quality further below.

Film synopsis – Eyes Wide Shut is a 1999 erotic psychological drama film directed, produced, and co-written by Stanley Kubrick, and starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. The plot centers on a Manhattan doctor who is shocked when his wife reveals that she contemplated cheating on him. He embarks on a night-long adventure and infiltrates a masked orgy of a secret society. It is based on the 1926 novella Dream Story (German: Traumnovelle) by Arthur Schnitzler, and transfers the story’s setting from early twentieth-century Vienna to 1990s New York City.

(post title image above and below) The cover art for the release is based on an original poster by Katharina Kubrick and Christiane Kubrick. If I recall correctly from one of the making of documentaries on the supplementary disc, this design was meant to be used as the film’s poster during the original release back in 1999 but was somehow rejected by the studios.

4K UHD + BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES

– New 4K digital restoration of the international version of the film, supervised and approved by director of photography Larry Smith, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
– One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features
– New interviews with Smith, set decorator and second-unit director Lisa Leone, and archivist Georgina Orgill
– Archival interview with Christiane Kubrick, director Stanley Kubrick’s wife
– Never Just a Dream (2019), featuring interviews with producer Jan Harlan; Katharina Kubrick, Stanley Kubrick’s daughter; and Anthony Frewin, Kubrick’s personal assistant
– Lost Kubrick: The Unfinished Films of Stanley Kubrick (2007)
– Kubrick Remembered (2014), featuring interviews with actors Todd Field and Leelee Sobieski and filmmaker Steven Spielberg
– Kubrick’s 1998 acceptance speech for the Directors Guild of America’s D. W. Griffith Award
– Press conference from 1999, featuring Harlan and actors Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman
– Teaser, trailer, and promos
– English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
– PLUS: An essay by author Megan Abbott and a 1999 interview with filmmaker and actor Sydney Pollack

I always give this small little disclaimer before I talk about the image/video quality of the 4K UHD presenation; I’m not a professional movie reviewer and so my take is purely for reference only and based on my own industry experience as a working visual effects artist.

Shot on 35mm Eastman Kodak film, the movie has very discernible grain especially for the night scenes, but just like the Criterion’s 4K UHD release of The Others, this is where the 4K restoration shines as the improved resolution is able to resolve the grain in a much more pleasant fashion than the earlier SD releases, where it shows up more as muddy noise and takes away from the intended viewing experience. This improvement is considerable and I am confident this new 4K release is the best edition to enjoy the movie on home media.

The supplementary and making of documentaries are excellent and are collected on a separate SD blu-ray. I was especially shocked and surprised that many of the New York street scenes are actually shot in a big studio in the UK, and the building of the sets was a very elaborate affair. The newly recorded interviews with the set decorator and archivist also offer many other illuminating insights into the making of the film, all of which add to the enjoyment of the film.

In summary, a very solid 4K UHD presentation of Stanley Kubrick’s final and cherished project, topped by a bonanza of bonus material. Highly recommended.

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