Grade:  D+

Director:  Cameron Crowe		Released:  December 2001
Writer:  Alejandro Amenábar		MPAA Rating:  R
Players:  Tom Cruise, Penelope Cruz, Jason Lee		Running time:  135 minutes

Ratings System

First off, I am something of a fan of Tom Cruise.  And I tend to really like Cameron Crowe's films.  So I was expecting to enjoy Vanilla Sky.  And I did enjoy it ... until almost the end.  I like the idea of a vain man (Cruise) becoming disfigured and losing his identity of self.  I liked that we started to see things that we couldn't explain, like who exactly is his girlfriend, and why is he in prison.  The part I didn't like was the movie's explanation for all of the goings-ons.  And here's why:

[spoilers, highlight hidden text to read]
I didn't like that the film basically tricked me.  If you want to deal with illusions of the mind, that's fine.  But do it in a way that makes sense, not in a way that makes the viewer say "wha ... !?"  Don't pull some cryogenic bullshit out of a hat, and tell me that we've been conveniently living inside his mind for half the film.  It's just a cheap ploy, and a lame attempt at creating a plot "twist".  And this movie looks even worse when you compare it to A Beautiful Mind.  A Beautiful Mind deals with much the same subject matter in a much more intelligent way.  And The Sixth Sense is another film that handles a similar theme in a much more effective manner.
[end spoilers]

There are a lot of things to enjoy about this film, but ultimately it's just average.  And I have to deduct points for the wool it tries to pull over my eyes, and the diversion it sets up, only to give a half-assed explanation later.

- crocoPuffs