The movie was mediocre buy I want Aames' flat screen television.

Rating: 6/10 (12 July 2002)

**Warning*Spoilers**
A number of films in recent history have been released concerning
warped realities, dreams and mental illness - Fight Club
American Psycho and Mulholland Drive to name just three - which
attempt to undermine the viewers belief in the protagonists reality
thereby providing an entertaining plot twist. The hitherto mentioned
films did this with varying degrees of success. Mulholland Drive
did this strategy brilliantly since the viewer is left to work it out by
themselves while leaving some level of doubt. American Psycho
(especially in the book) was able to achieve this as well. Fight
Club had one failing: every aspect about this warped reality twist
was revealed and in so doing the audience was treated like a
child. Vanilla Sky, like Fight Club, destroys a reasonably good
concept film by demystifying the story.
The first words in the dialogue  Open Your Eyes' spoken by
Sophia (Penelope Cruz) in the first instance are a link to the
original movie and, in the second instance a clue to unravelling
the twist. With these soft words we are awoken to the extravagances of David Aames' life. Aames (Tom Cruise) is filthy
rich, handsome and charming; his life seems like a dream to the
rest of us proletariat. Aames is having what he believes is a
casual affair with Julie (Cameron Diaz) but he falls, immediately,
in love with Sophia at his own party. Heart broken and desperate
Julie commits suicide by driving her car over a bridge with Aames
inside of it. Consequently, Aames is disfigured and almost loses
the three things that made his life a dream: his good looks, the
company left to him by his father and the woman he loves.

Miraculously, his dream life returns: his face is reconstructed; he
retains ownership of his company and; Sophia loves him not for
his looks but for who he really is. However, his life once again
becomes a surreal nightmare when the dead Julie seems to be
alive and acting as Sophia  did that sentence make sense?

This story is told from the point of view of Aames in a prison cell
who is accused of murder. To prepare a defence he tells his story
to a psychiatrist who finally forces Aames to remember the
incident where he murders Sophia when he thought she was
Julie. Is that the end? Of course its not. Aames also remembers a
freaky incident in a bar where a dorky guy in a suit convinces him
that he is some sort of God. No no he is not a God but only in a
dream induced by cryogenics. That's right, he killed himself after
was disfigured and began a dream while cryogenically frozen.
Yawn. (I just reread what I just wrote and it sounds really silly. Wait
a minute maybe it's not my writing but the movie itself.)
Okay, so the plot is disappointing. However Cameron Crowe is
undoubtedly a talented director who proved his worth with his
previous film Almost Famous. One scene in Vanilla Sky demonstrates his talent. The nightclub scene showed his talent
with lighting and camera work. It also showed his talent with
actors which is poignantly demonstrated by the extremely
awkward moment where a drunk Aames, in a desperate move to
renew their relationship, forces Sophia to reminisce their first
flirtatious encounter. Lastly, and most importantly, this scene
demonstrates his knowledge and awareness of music as a
necessary tool to convey the emotions of the characters to the
audience. There are few directors who use music as effectively as
Crowe. Throughout this movie he uses the music to not only
convey the emotions but also to mock them, which is reminiscent
of the great Kubrick.
In the end this is a hard move to judge because you have a
talented director and a mildly interesting story but ruined by a poor
ending.
6/10  6 for Crowe's performance.