Various – Eyes Wide Shut (Music From The Motion Picture) (2xLP, Coke bottle green)

Eyes Wide Shut (Music From The Motion Picture) by Various is a hauntingly atmospheric soundtrack that perfectly captures the eerie, dreamlike tone of Stanley Kubrick’s final film. The collection blends classical compositions, ambient textures, and unsettling piano motifs to reflect the film’s psychological intensity and sensual tension. Notably, György Ligeti’s dissonant "Musica Ricercata II" becomes a character in itself, underscoring pivotal scenes with a chilling minimalism. Jocelyn Pook’s "Masked Ball" offers a hypnotic choral piece that adds a gothic, ritualistic edge, encapsulating the film’s themes of secrecy and desire.

The soundtrack is more than an accompaniment; it deepens the narrative experience and amplifies the emotional undertones of Kubrick’s mysterious world. From Shostakovich’s waltzes to Chris Isaak’s sultry "Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing," each track is carefully curated to mirror the dualities of pleasure and paranoia. Whether as a standalone album or an integral part of the film's atmosphere, Eyes Wide Shut’s musical selections provoke reflection and unease, lingering long after the final note.

Reviews

"It has a quality of spaciousness, vast sea vistas and rolling waves over deep waters… A highly evocative, polytonal, mini tone poem." – MusicWeb International

"Yeah, that music was menacing and unsettling… when the higher pitched voice of the priest comes in it transports you somewhere beautiful." – Dazed

"The chilling piano of Ligeti prefaces a graceful waltz from Shostakovich, which leads into the bayou sleaze of Chris Isaak’s Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing." – Tinnitist

"Her work on the 1999 feature would make her name… the score still sounds like nothing else – a monastic swirl of guttural chants and featherweight string arrangements." – Far Out Magazine

"If you remember his choice of music for his other films, you will not be surprised that Kubrick opted for a wide range of source music together with vivid and varied original music by Jocelyn Pook." – MusicWeb International