Dir. Cameron Crowe US 2001
It seems like the mind-f@ck/dreamscape genre film is this year's
darling: think Mulholland Drive, Waking Life and Memento. Cameron Crowe
(Almost Famous) weighs in with his variation on the theme with Vanilla Sky,
a remake of the 1997 Spanish feature, Abre los Ojos (Open Your Eyes). The
film begins with Penelope Cruz who intones the words, "abre los ojos,"
indicating that there will be two levels of "reality"
at work. Tom 'toothy' Cruise plays David Aames, a freewheeling New York
bachelor who has inherited a publishing empire from his dead father.
David is smitten with one woman, Sofia (Cruz) and stalked by another,
Julie (Cameron Diaz). In a jealous rage Julie crashes her car with her and David
in it, killing herself and disfiguring his face. This is when things
take a surreal twist. Vanilla Sky is a roller coaster ride combining conspiracy
theories, dreams and nightmares - it will keep you guessing at every turn. (136m)
