Gunnery Sgt. Hartman on Eyes Wide Shut

An interesting interview with R. Lee Ermey, the prototypical Sgt. Slaughter, of Full Metal Jacket fame, the 62-year-old former jarhead, host of Discovery Channel's military documentary "Mail Call," originator of an infamous improvised quote about "goddamned common courtesy" that became a classic:

Did you and Kubrick become close while shooting Full Metal Jacket?
Very close. Stanley called me up all the time. He'd call at three o'clock in the morning and say, "Oh, it's 10 o'clock over here." [Laughs] "Yeah, well, it's three o-fucking-clock in the morning here, Stanley. Oh well." He called me about two weeks before he died, as a matter of fact. We had a long conversation about Eyes Wide Shut. He told me it was a piece of shit and that he was disgusted with it and that the critics were going to have him for lunch. He said Cruise and Kidman had their way with him—exactly the words he used.

What did he mean?
He was kind of a shy little timid guy. He wasn't real forceful. That's why he didn't appreciate working with big, high-powered actors. They would have their way with him, he would lose control, and his movie would turn to shit.

Interesting. But, I don't think you should take any of his views on current foreign policy seriously.