Open your eyes

Original title : Abre los ojos

 

Language : Spanish

 

Year of release : 1997

 

Run time : 2h

 

Genre : Drama / Sci Fi / Psychological Thriller / Mystery

 

Cast : Penelope Cruz

 

 

The movie is the original after which Vanilla Sky was crafted. I always compare it to the American movie and it doesn't even come close.

 

The whole time I watched the movie I couldn't help myself but compare it to one of my favorite movies,its remake which is built very close to this one, just better.

 

Cesar is a 25 year old who "loves" women and leaves them. He sleeps with Nuria but he's already sick of her. Unlike in Vanilla Sky, his father owned a restaurant chain, and that's where he got his money from. His parents died when he was a kid.

 

Cesar is selfish, self centered, and doesn't believe in God. He is honestly ,an annoying character, as he is an arsehole,mostly to Nuria, for no reason.

 

Cesar meets Sofia at his birthday party, where she comes with his best friend, who has a case of "the ugly friend complex" next to Cesar.

Sofia is an actress and a mime(in Vanilla Sky-the only name they keep from this movie-Sofia- is a dancer), and he says pretty mean things about her profession.

They leave the party together,while everybody is still there, and the morning after, he sees Nuria followed them. He agrees to get in the car with her, and she drives the car off the road into a ditch.

 

His face is completely mutilated now, and seeking Sofia,she doesn't seem comfortable talking to him. He asks her out, but at the club,she is with his best friend,as she was afraid to be alone with him.

 

The movie is narrated by Cesar ( who is wearing a mask to hide his face) who tells his story to a psychiatrist,as he is jailed in a mental institution for murder. But he doesn't remember killing anyone.

 

Unlike its remake, the movie didn't have those beautiful,vivid colors, that dream feel to it.

One thing I actually liked better with this movie was that Penelope wore dresses when they met and in the last scene,and she looked more feminine. I also liked their first interaction and night together better, as in Vanilla Sky the dialogue is not that good, it feels and looks awkward,like in real life when you  meet someone and don't know what to talk to them and how to act around them,and I thought that's what the director tried to achieve in there.

I also liked that in this one the fact Cesar and Sofia liked each other was more subtle, they didn't flirt in front of his best friend,and Sofia didn't easily go along with him.

 

Just like the remake, the whole movie is a dream.

The movie doesn't have as good visual effects either.

 

The actors were great, especially Eduardo Noriega,who plays the lead. The mask they put on him,although completely distorts his face, still allows him to perform and have a lot of expressiveness.

 

I didn't like the music, the soundtrack,it was nothing special.

 

The movie is streaming on Freevee Amazon Channel, The Roku Channel, and is for rent of sale on Amazon, Apple, Google, Vudu, YouTube.

 

Rating : Worth a watch !