Babygirl is the unhinged Christmas movie Eyes Wide Shut should have been
A24If you think Stanley Kubrick’s final film was deranged, then you’ve not seen anything because Babygirl puts the Hoe Hoe Hoe in taking back female pleasure.
Nicole Kidman seems to have a thing for getting frisky during the holidays, and who can blame her? As 2024 draws to a close, she’s now done this twice on screen. 1999’s Eyes Wide Shut was her starting point – and for many, it’s a lustful good time worth rating as one of the best Christmas movies ever. However, I take a different view.
Maybe it’s because I first watched it in the 2020s, or maybe it’s because the photo of Kidman allegedly leaving her divorce hearing against Tom Cruise gives me joy, but Kubrick’s last movie leaves me feeling nothing but bah humbug. If you’ve not seen it, Kidman’s Alice admits to having fantasized about a man, so naturally, he joins an underground group that is obsessed with sex. Cue all the nakedness and splayed limbs you can imagine.
Except it’s not all about bodies bodies bodies – it’s mostly a brooding Tom Cruise pacing the dimly lit streets of New York, wondering where it all went wrong. If you ask me, that’s an incredibly boring and unnecessary use of time. “Man doesn’t get what he wants and sulks” isn’t exactly a narrative angle we need more of. If we’re showing a woman’s lifetime of unfulfilled desires, at least be a good sport about it.
Nicole Kidman takes back female pleasure in Babygirl
But none of this matters anymore! Where Alice was let down, Romy (also played by Kidman) in A24‘s Babygirl soars. She’s the CEO of a flourishing tech company (win) and has a baby-faced Harris Dickinson within her entourage of new interns (another win). Instead of hiding away in the background, Samuel (Dickinson) makes himself known… by trying to dominate Romy sexually. And yes, it’s all during the festive break.
It’s a hard left turn into bewilderment, but Halina Reijn’s take on pleasure from the female gaze hits on something essential that Kubrick never grasped – fun. Neither Romy nor Samuel really knows what they’re doing, fumbling about in the roles they both want to play. If you’ve not seen the new movie, this is essentially how we make the segue into Kidman being on the floor lapping at a plate of milk.
No, you’ve not had an aneurysm. You’ve read that correctly! Our favorite Aussie Academy Award winner (sorry, Cate) is using her body to do some seriously NSFW things, and it looks like she feels absurd about the whole shebang (get it?). But therein lies the magic… it’s all fun, silly, and unhinged.
You gotta be fun to be truly unhinged
A24Where Eyes Wide Shut took its Christmas extra-curriculars extremely seriously, Babygirl lets loose. Romy nearly loses it all – and herself – in the process of pursuing her desire, but it’s a necessary journey to come out on top. By the end of the movie, she’s got everything she could ever want, as well as the option for more in the future.
There is absolutely no other time you can see Kidman’s disgust at an unclean hotel room and her snogging a strange girl in a rave within an hour of each other. It’s depraved madness, and we should be thankful for it.
In a time where female empowerment has never been more important, Romy consenting to give over her power is a thrilling watch. She doesn’t always go about it in the best way, but she also never lets fear talk her out of things. There are a lot of complex dynamics at play, but the basics are clear: Romy is a woman with needs, and she’s going to figure out how to get those in the most uninhibited way possible.
Granted, it’s not one to take the family to on Christmas Day. But if you need a moment of hedonism to yourself in the festive break, it’s the ideal choice. It’s shot straight into my top 10 of the year – I only hope Kidman gives us more of this kind of festive fun in years to come.
Babygirl is in US cinemas from December 25 and UK cinemas from January 10. You can also check out more new A24 movies, new movies streaming, and the best movies of 2024.