Vanilla Sky (2001)

Director Cameron Crowe brings us Vanilla Sky, a fairly successful retelling of the 1997 Spanish film, Abre los Ojos. Publishing heir and playboy extraordinaire David Aames (Cruise) decides to cast aside his friend and lover Julie Gianni (Diaz) in favor of a new and irresistably attractive dancer named Sofia (Cruz, in a role she also held in the original film). Julie turns out to be a psycho hose beast and begins to stalk David, turning to desperate measures in an attempt to ensure the two will be together forever. In the aftermath of the incident, David struggles to return his life to normalcy, and soon descends into a state of mental breakdown.

You may have heard that this movie twists dramatically towards the end, and indeed it does. So much so, in fact, that the film's trailer really only describes the first 45 minutes to an hour of the movie, from which it begins to veer towards an entirely different conclusion. The ending is one which you either accept or you don't; there is little room for fence-sitting. Fellow TFM contributors Ryan and Brian hated it. I, on the other hand, found the conclusion interesting, though perhaps a bit "tidy" and in some ways reminiscient of a certain Arnold Schwarzenegger flick. It is nevertheless unconventional, most likely due in large part to the foreign origins of the story. American viewers are often confused or dismayed by the storytelling conventions of other cultures, but Crowe does a good job of preserving the evidence of the film's foreign origins, while translating the details to an Americanized version.

Regardless of one's acceptance of the story's plausibility, it is difficult to dismiss the all-around superb performances of the cast. Tom Cruise is excellent as the charming pretty boy and tortured soul, and Cameron Diaz brings just the right amount of sexiness and psychotic intensity to her role as the jilted lover. But the star of the show is Penelope Cruz, who is absolutely breathtaking as Sofia. She effectively combines wit, cuteness, and exotic flair in a way that is simply irresistable. As a matter of fact, I think I'm in love with her. I have no doubt that she will readily leave that flake Tom, and come join me for a lifetime of gettin' it on. Don't worry, you're all invited to the wedding.

Two more highlights of the movie are the surprising shots of New York city completely empty and silent, as well as Cameron Crowe's trademark use of superb musical accompaniment. At the end of the day, any assessment of this movie will be dominated by one's opinion of the film's conclusion. While not as thought-provoking or utterly brilliant as noir pieces like Mulholland Drive, Vanilla Sky is nevertheless an entertaining journey, a great character study, and a showpiece of brilliant acting.