What’s Aged the Best?
Party joke; Kidman; redheads; Pollack; Shining echoes; piano music; natural bodies; home marijuana; taxi era; masks; timeless desire and relationship concerns
In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:55:39Read transcript
- The masked party has endured as a reusable cultural joke, comparable to the key party in The Ice Storm.
- Late-1990s Kidman’s beauty and sexual confidence are praised, from the opening nude shot to her final line.
- The film’s many redheads are celebrated, including Sally.
- Pollack, especially in suspenders, is praised as an accomplished director giving a major performance; his eagerness to learn from Kubrick is offered as an explanation.
- The opening ballroom’s use of music associated with The Shining and its visual resemblance are appreciated.
- The eerie, simple piano motif is memorable enough to imagine a child learning it.
- The natural appearance of the nude performers is praised, with a qualification that cosmetic surgery cannot be known merely by looking.
- Smoking marijuana at home, keeping it in a Band-Aid container, and unwinding into frank conversation are nominated.
- The taxi era without GPS or spouse-tracking smartphones enables Bill’s wandering, though an early mobile phone is acknowledged.
- Masks, secret societies, and the exploration of sexual appetite feel timeless rather than tied to1999.
- Marion’s confession broadens the film beyond the real stars’ marriage by showing desire expressed in front of a father, fiancé, and desired man; grief-driven vulnerability is an alternative interpretation.
- The film’s emotional concerns and nonspecific period make it a candidate for the best-aged1999film, with modern tracking and communication as the main differences.