Vanilla Sky *** (2001, Tom Cruise, Penélope Cruz, Cameron Diaz, Kurt Russell) – Classic Movie Review 613

Tom Cruise’s fans are in for a bit of a shock. He’s disfigured and masked for much of this arty, romantic 2001 mystery movie that’s just as posh and smart but even duller than his Eyes Wide Shut.

Tom has set himself a mission impossible to try to entertain with his role here as David Aames, a rich womanizing publisher, who meets his dream girl in Sofia Serrano (lovely Penélope Cruz). This infuriates his old girlfriend, Julie Gianni (Cameron Diaz), and she promptly crashes their car. A smashed-up Tom lives to tell his tale to jail psychiatrist Kurt Russell — but has to spend the rest of the film in a mask!

Writer-director Cameron Crowe’s classy, handsome-looking 2001 film is beautifully crafted and lovingly acted, but it’s oh so odd, weird and mystifying that it can be quite alienating. On the plus side, the Cruise-Cruz duo sizzle and Diaz is dazzling once again.

Based on the 1997 Spanish film, Open Your Eyes (Abre Los Ojos), which also starred Cruz, the film boasts a new title that refers to a painting by Monet.

Steven Spielberg has a cameo in the party sequence. The Big Bang Theory’s Johnny Galecki appears as Peter Brown. And Jason Lee, Noah Taylor, Timothy Spall, Tilda Swinton and Michael Shannon also star. It’s quite a cast, so you can’t blame the actors.

© Derek Winnert 2014 Classic Movie Review 613

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