(Credits: Far Out / Tom Hanks / Publicity)
Sun 19 October 2025 23:30, UK
Tom Hanks is no stranger to classic cinema.
While not everything that he’s done has been an absolute knockout by any stretch of the imagination, it’s easy to look at his track record and get a good idea of what anyone should expect out of an actor the minute the director yells ‘action’. But for all of the slice-of-life stories or larger-than-life tales that Hanks has found himself playing over the years, there are always going to be a handful of movies that go right over his head the first time around.
Then again, Hanks was never the kind of person to make the traditional arthouse film. He had a brilliant range, but no one was expecting him to pull a Christian Bale and try to look completely different in every single movie that he made. He had a reputation of being one of the most lovable actors onscreen, but he could easily see the merit in movies that were a bit more cerebral than the typical classics that came out every year.
Because as much as a director like Steven Spielberg can tug on people’s heartstrings whenever he made a film, it was as easy for people like Stanley Kubrick to think outside the box. He was never looking to go with the conventional approach, and while that may have made him a nightmare for most people to work with, it’s not like his filmography didn’t speak for itself half the time.
Up until working on Eyes Wide Shut, Kubrick wanted to challenge the audience that went to see his movies, and even if that meant getting pretty abrasive on films like A Clockwork Orange or The Shining, 2001: A Space Odyssey still ranks as one of the most breathtaking films ever put to tape. Not every piece of it makes the most sense, but when looking at the film, Hanks couldn’t but be transfixed by what he was seeing.
In all fairness, though, Hanks admitted that he was more than a little bit confused going through it for the first time, saying, “I didn’t understand 2001: A Space Odyssey when I (first) saw it. What won best picture the year of 2001: A Space Odyssey? I think it was Oliver! There’s a huge difference between those two films. There’s also a huge difference between the lasting legacy of those two films.”
And with no disrespect meant to the brilliant musical, pieces of Kubrick’s movie have seemed to transcend what most people think of when they go to see a movie. There are certain sections that might be more than a little bit disturbing for people not used to it, but in terms of a cinematic statement, Kubrick had a lot on his mind than what the theatrical version of Oliver! had to offer half the time.
Considering what we’re living through today, there are even a few prophetic moments many people took for granted. There was no way of guessing that the struggles between man and machine would have become so pronounced, and with the advent of tools like AI, there are people that are still trying to find a way to make their voices heard and hold onto their humanity despite technology trying to take them out of the equation.
It didn’t need to make the most sense at the time, but Kubrick seemed to be well ahead of the curve years before anyone else was. There are more than a few frames that are works of art on their own, but even if not everything seems as meticulously planned out, every single object seen means something.
Related Topics