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VANILLA SKY
Review by Gordon Justesen
Stars: Tom Cruise,
Penelope Cruz, Kurt Russell, Jason Lee, Noah Taylor, Cameron Diaz
Director: Cameron Crowe
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Surround, French Dolby Surround
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Studio: Paramount
Features: See Review
Length: 135 Minutes
Release Date: May 21, 2002
“Sometimes, the mind
behaves as if it were in a dream. Faces change, people become other people. The
subconscious is a powerful thing.”
Film ****
Reviewing a film like Vanilla Sky is such a
difficult task, even if it’s such an astonishingly brilliant piece of
moviemaking. For a movie aimed at a mostly mainstream audience, this is
definitely a rare kind of film. It challenges the audience to a story that goes in
numerous directions and may leave some viewers totally lost. It blends many
different elements in the process, including romance, humor, mystery, and the
last two thirds of the film feels like a proper subplot from The Matrix.
And even though describing this film is an immense task, this is simply an
unforgettable film, and proves once again that the collaboration of Tom Cruise
and director Cameron Crowe makes for a surefire newfound classic, such as their
last collaboration, Jerry Maguire, proved to be. Crowe has to be one of
the busiest directors of recent memory, as he reportedly he went straight into
production on this project following his Oscar-winning Almost Famous.
This an American remake of the Spanish film Abre Los Ojos (Open Your
Eyes), which I haven’t been able to experience yet, but I can certainly
say that the impact of this film makes me want to see it this very second.
Let me begin praising
this film by its eye-popping opening sequence, which I truly feel is Cameron
Crowe’s shining moment as a director. It has Cruise’s character venturing
into a completely vacant Times Square, and begins running down the street in a
complete shock. It’s a masterful sequence that perfectly sets the tone for
this dreamlike film.
Cruise, in one of his most daring film choices to date,
plays David Aames, who as the film begins, is very much on top of the world.
Running a magazine publishing empire left to him by his father, David has
absolutely everything life has to offer. Money, cars, plentiful friends, plus
the added bonus of frequent sex with a gorgeous woman named Juliana, played by
Cameron Diaz (I rest my case). But something is truly missing from David’s
satisfactory lifestyle, which is the feeling of true love. While throwing a
routine party gathering, David meets the eye-catching Sofia (Penelope Cruz), who
immediately takes his breath away. Following a beautiful night of getting to
know one another, David truly feels that he’s finally found his true love
companion.
At the point when David starts to truly feel alive for the
first time in his life, he encounters Juliana, who appears to be following him
with a sudden case of jealously. She offers David a ride in her car, upon which
she unleashes the striking truth about her feelings for him, which causes her to
become a little deranged behind the wheel, thus resulting in a horrific
accident.
I cannot bring myself to
reveal the rest of the film for two reasons; it would reveal absolutely too much
and I’m not sure that I would be able to translate most of the latter events
to paper, except to say that the line between dream and reality will be
completely undetectable. They are scenes that you as a viewer should simply
watch and be astounded by. All that I can say is that David’s life takes a
staggeringly strange turn for the unexpected in the aftermath of the car
accident. It all builds up to a remarkable revelation at the end that is nothing
short of striking.
This is a pure triumph for all involved. Cruise is at his
razor sharp best as a man trapped and haunted by both his reality and his
dreams. Penelope Cruz is the pure epitome of absolute magic and beauty, which
she displays here very memorably. The film also gets strong supporting work from
Kurt Russell, Jason Lee, Noah Taylor, and Ms. Diaz, who really gave me the
chills with her performance here, even as I still consider her the most
beautiful thing on the face of the earth. But most of all, this is a triumph for
Cameron Crowe in by far his most challenging piece yet. With Vanilla Sky,
Crowe has evolved even further as a monumental filmmaker.
Vanilla Sky is film for both the heart and the senses to be touched and assaulted by. It’s a one-of-a-kind motion picture that will definitely need a second viewing for complete understanding from most viewers. Very seldom has a film haunted me after each single viewing since perhaps Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut. This is one of last year’s most remarkable films, as well as one of the most provocative and challenging viewing experiences I’ve had in sometime.
Had it not been for some
occasional grain that popped up here and there during the opening portion of the
presentation, this would’ve received a full four star rating. Aside from that
slight flaw, Paramount has made a glorious looking disc with this anamorphic
presentation. Image is seen in top digital quality, with pure clearness and
crispness, and the colors are perfectly vibrant. The disc’s standout moment is
in the film’s last 45 minutes, which include breathtaking backgrounds that I
knew would turn up nicely on this format. The video job on this disc is
somewhat, well…dreamlike.
Audio ****
For a movie that involves
a dreamlike feeling, the presence of distinct audio would sort of be expected,
and Paramount has delivered in this department with an astonishing 5.1 audio
mix. Like many of Cameron Crowe’s films, the strong points in the sound come
from the use of music. This film includes songs by the likes of Radiohead, Paul
McCartney, Peter Gabriel, and The Chemical Brothers, in addition to the nice
subtle score by Crowe’s wife, Nancy Wilson, and the music use is once again
the highlight in this film. Specific settings, such as crowded areas like
nightclubs are picked up extremely well too, and the sound simply never lets
down from the opening scenes, allowing dialogue to be heard clearly at the same
time. A magnificent job from Paramount.
Features ****
Strange how Paramount
didn’t think to issue this release as a Special Collector’s Edition, because
this one’s got the proper level of extras to be considered such. Included is a
wonderful commentary by Cameron Crowe and Nancy Wilson, which like every Crowe
commentary, is very informative and much exciting to listen to. The commentary
also includes a brief conversation with Mr. Cruise. Also featured are two
documentaries; “Prelude to a Dream” and “Hitting it Hard”, both of which
are superbly done. There’s also a interview segment with Paul McCartney, a
music video for “Afrika Shox” by Leftfield/Afrika Bambaataa, photo gallery
with an introduction by photographer Neal Preston, and two theatrical trailers.
Summary: