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Vanilla Sky

Vanilla Sky

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I'll tell you in another life when we're both cats...
Review: This is an intense thriller that twists the mind and commands you to follow. From the sweetly toned, "Open you eyes" to the final revelation you cannot refuse to be captivated. The story does not allow you to lead it, you must surrender to it's pace and in doing so you are rewarded with real understanding.

This film offers real insight into life, power and interpersonal relationship. While it decidedly uses science fiction to deliver the final message the conflict is well grounded. You must pay close attention to this film to appreciate the details and fully understand it's implications, but it is well worth it.

Rent or buy this film now. It will move you, and isn't that the point of all art?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: VANILLA SKY.... a misunderstood masterpiece
Review: I thought this film was visually and intellectually brilliant. The performances of Tom Cruise and (especially) Cameron Diaz are among the year's best. It got a lot of negative publicity but most people I know share similar feelings for the film. It's mind-bending to be sure, and it can confuse at times, but it is so very worth seeing. It OPENS YOUR EYES.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Abres Les Ojos
Review: I would recommend Abres Les Ojos over Vanilla Sky. Penelope Cruz give great performances in both of these films. However, Cameron Crowe did not change much from the original. That said, this movie is still good. One of those reality questioning movies that takes a few good twists and turns that will leave you either confused or thinking you have an explanation, but nobody knows for sure. That was the original intent, not to answer anything. This is a solid title with good performances from the entire cast, including two of my favorites, Jason Lee and Penelope Cruz. Worth checking out.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: From the mind of Cameron Crowe
Review: This is not a romance movie. Those who watch it as a romance movie will be disappointed. Apparently the people working for movie times websites didn't know what genre to put Vanilla Sky under. Even though there is a 'love story' inside the movie, I wouldn't go into the movie expecting a romance.

With that said, there is another way to watch this movie. Forget all your ideas of what this movie is supposed to be. Because not all movies are made to depict reality. Vanilla Sky is pure art expression. The scenes, coupled with a great soundtrack, depict something straight from the director/writer's mind. Lots of movies are applauded for technical expertise, which isn't bad. (Like the attention to detail Stanley Kubrick had for his movies. Or Steven Spielberg and his story expertise.) But, 'Sky' doesn't need to be technical. You have to watch it from a different mind set. To love this movie, you must understand what it feels like to be trapped in a dream. You must understand why the main character would make the choices that he did. This is the first movie that has, in my opinion, properly depicted a nightmare. I would almost go as far as putting this movie under science fiction. But, these ideas of lucid dreams seem so real. Another movie that I saw that comes close to the same idea of Vanilla Sky is Jacob's Ladder. I recommend both movies.

One of the only reasons this movie falls short of it's potential is that the script tends to assume that nobody will understand it. The movie, at the end, is constantly trying to explain itself. In that way, the movie tends to stray from it's intent.

Very early in the movie, Cameren Crowe starts to give you the impression that something isn't quite right with the main character. It's not necessarily concrete evidence. It's just this huge exhilarating feeling. I wondered if the movie was really going to turn into the movie I wanted it to be when I was about one-third of the way into it. Then it all unfolded beautifully, as if I was in someone else's mind. I believe Cameren Crowe wanted to express what was in his head. Not that the plot/story was a new idea - it was just that, I believe Cameron understood the story on a higher level than most. I love Crowe for making this movie just as much as I love the movie itself.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Schizoprenic, bait and switch film
Review: This film turned out to be nothing like it was advertised. If I had know the genre of film this was and that it was a remake, I would have saved my theatre money and rented the original, which I hear is better.

As it was, I sat down expecting a coherent movie and got a love story, thriller, fantasy, and sci-fi film in <3hrs. And the patronizing guy at the end to explain the film was the best. IMO, if you have to explain the film to the audience, it's bad. And this guy explains for nearly half an hour, it seemed.

I think it was a bad movie. There are many deep, 'literary' films that speak to and touch the viewer and don't have to be explained in the end.

I don't particularly love Cruise, but his performances and the other actors were great. The problem of the film lies with the director and the screenwriters.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Cinematic mind-bender
Review: Cinema is filled with films that attempt the whole "mind-bend the audience", whether it be time-based or reality-based. The vast majority fail because they are either ridiculous or boring.

Vanilla Sky succeeds because the story is as captivating as the way it was filmed. Made by the one and only Alejandro Amenabar (Thesis, The Others) from his original Abre Los Ojos, Vanilla Sky is one of the most underrated movies out there, probably because critics and elitist movie geeks would never praise anything with TC the superstar in it. In fact, the ads of Tom's giant mug left me as reluctant to see this movie as any other starring Tom Cruise. It's a typical hollywood ad, but don't be fooled by it; Vanilla Sky is far from a typical hollywood film, which is about the highest compliment one can give to a movie these days.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: AWFUL !
Review: If they had tried to make it this bad, they simply wouldn't have suceeded. It's hard to believe that with the talent involved , they would come up with such a terrible movie. Do yourself a favor and get one of Cameron Crowe's good works (of which there are many) instead !

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Visually stunning...
Review: Cameron Crowe's re-make of Spanish film Abre Los Ojos is one of the few re-makes that are actually any good.

But it gets better- it's a stunning piece of film.

Whilst many people have given this film low ratings, I have one thing to say to you: THEY ARE WRONG.
Fair enough- the storyline is confusing (especially the ending). You need to see it at least twice to get it. But there's some great cinematography at the start of the film. Perfect editing. Fantastic soundtrack. All you need to do, is Open Your Eyes to see the greatness of the film. You need to make an effort to love it- otherwise, it WILL kick back. In other words, if you don't like it, it won't like you. Once you've seen it already, see it again. The many hidden details that appear are very odd, but also very cool.

And one more thing- I saw this 6 times at my local cinema (theatre). Three times by the end of the opening weekend. I've only ever done that with one film. This one.

If you didn't see it at the cinema, you missed out. Make up for it on DVD. PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: They should have stopped with _Open Your Eyes_.
Review: The only thing that kept me in my theatre seat during the first two-thirds of _Vanilla Sky_ was a healthy dose of pre-movie libations. Even so, I was bored. What kept me there during the last third was incredulity--how, HOW, could a movie deteriorate so much, so fast?

Only in retrospect do I understand the film's convoluted timeline, which I suppose is meant to be clever a la _Pulp Fiction_ or _Memento_. Unfortunately, the strong-armed attempts to jerk the audience from one scene to the next only renders _Vanilla Sky_ annoying. Added to the broken narrative is Tom Cruise's "Look, I Can Play a Tortured Soul" straining and Cameron Diaz's "Taking a Page from _Fatal Attraction_" nuttiness.

I'm uncertain whether the Spanish version of _Open Your Eyes_ pulls off the spiritual journey where _Vanilla Sky_ fails, but I do know that doing worse isn't possible.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Worse the second time around!!!
Review: After seeing this film in the theater, I thought it was simply brilliant. I was so pleased that I immediately found a DVD copy of Abre los Ojos (Open Your Eyes) and soon realized how, in comparison, the remake is nothing more than a higher budget exact duplicate of the original. Tom Cruise...so what! Cameron Crowe didn't do anything but reshoot Open Your Eyes, even the cuts are the same.


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