Definitely disturbing and bizarre but good aspects

Rating: 5/10 (29 December 2001)

It took me a while to understand why those who viewed it before me said Vanilla Sky was bizarre but by the end I totally agreed.
The fact that Tom Cruise's character is such an unlikeable guy is a testament to his acting. His portrayal of a wounded, tormented man was very good. Cameron Diaz and Jason Lee were also very good. I loved Kurt Russell as the shrink and found myself rooting for him to make a difference in the film. Penelope Cruz has some good moments but her speech patterns detract from her lines. It is not the accent, for I find accents appealing. She could use a speech therapist to help her change her speech errors!
It is not an erotic thriller as it is advertised but rather a very dark, bizarre, somewhat despairing film with some great performances.
I do not enjoy foul language or scenes that cause viewers to become voyeurs. Although the sex scenes are important to the plot they were overdone. I feel conflicted by the bizarre plot twists and darkness of this film in terms of recommending it to others. I definitely do not recommend it to anyone under 20. I do feel some of the performances were worth watching. Perhaps my conflicts could be soothed if I recommend seeing it only for matinee prices!