Movie Review – Vanilla Sky

Nightmares of dreams

Wonder why this film is not as famous as a Mulholland Drive or any of those sick mind-fuck movies out there. Having a top star in these type of mind fucks is an added advantage because that is the last thing you expect out of it. Even though ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ is one of the movies of Tom Cruise, which was in a different world, it was not impressive when compared to other Stanley Kubrick products. However, if the Kubrick tag is taken out of it, it is still a great film by leaps and bounds. Throughout the film, I found some daring similarity between the two.

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The thing, which differentiates ‘Vanilla Sky’ from other film, is how it cleverly deceives the viewers through its storytelling technique. What starts as a jolly good film ends up in tatters at a later stage. The first twenty minutes or so is a pure Tom Cruise bliss. He is jovial, he is funny, he is everything that a man would dream of to be, and a woman would dream of. Then there is a sudden start. An accident happens all of a sudden and there is a sudden shift in the mood of the film. It again comes back to normalcy but it is not straightforward like before. The film wavers between both the worlds and only during climax, we get to know the reality.

It is not just David Aames (Tom Cruise) who is charming but Brian Shelby (Jason Lee) too. In fact, if there is one person who’d get my sympathy, it’d be him. Poor fellow, he is an artist and struggles to get girls but David gets them so easily without breaking a sweat. That includes the girls Brian likes and dates. Even though David fails the bro code, Brian does not. That is why he is a wonderful character. Sofia Serrano (Penélope Cruz) is a lovable character. May be a woman of dreams, maybe, that is why David constructed her in such way in his dreams. She is hot, funny and adorable. On the other hand, Julianna “Julie” Gianni (Cameron Diaz) is such a bitch. Not really a fan of her as such, so when she appears like a bitchy character, it fitted her to tee. Especially the scene leading up to the accident was amazing.

David’s love for movies is evident from the various posters, which adores his screen, and building each character in his dream through the inspiration drawn from these films is a great idea. I found Dr. Curtis McCabe’s (Kurt Russell) character to be similar to that of Dr. Sean Maguire from ‘Good Will Hunting’, even though it is not inspired from ‘Good Will Hunting’. Acting wise too, he was prolific. During the confrontation, the way he looks so confidently at David as if the mask is not a concern at all was terrific. Wonder how the whole thought process would have gone into making this character because it is actually his fragment of imagination. Even though he is said to be a character who cares for David, he first comes out as a person who cruelly investigates him and only then shows concern. That is how we want people ideally, right. It is like us writing screenplay for people around us.

The high point or the main factor of making any of these mind fuck movies is to see how unsettling and dark it can be made without spookiness and jump cuts. It is about creating an environment as if we are drugged. The film achieves it by the opening scene and carefully emancipates itself every now and then. There were times when I was truly engrossed in the film and come out of it with a start. Experiences like these are why we watch movies for, which lures us into the films completely.

Movie Review – The Tourist

One try, too many

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck – One name I memorised proudly to show off during my college days after watching ‘The Lives of Others’. I precisely remember watching ‘The Lives of Others’ and ‘The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’ back to back during one of my semester holiday movie sprees and liking the director’s name of ‘The Lives of Others’ and the movie name of the ‘The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’. I wish ‘The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’ had been directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. The name just suits you see. I liked the ‘The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’ amongst the two too. Somehow the name Julian Schnabel who’s the director of it, didn’t get registered at all.

Thanks to the name and the huge reputation ‘The Lives of Others’ carried, I remember that ‘The Tourist’ had a humongous expectation and that too came during the December Oscar window. Naturally as it was by an Oscar director everyone was thinking that it’d be one of a kind. But thanks to the hugely negative reviews around that time, especially from my go to critic Roger Ebert, I didn’t feel like watching the movie at all.

When I watched it now, ten years later, the film was very much like ‘Knight and Day’, only that it was not funny. Even though a crap, ‘Knight and Day’ at least works as a time pass film but ‘The Tourist’ had no idea what it was trying to do. Especially after climax I was severely irritated. Even an ultra-commercial Rajni 80s film would feel better. I was wondering why a director like – okay I’m going to type his full name again – Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, would want to make a movie like this. The only explanation I could think of is a free trip to Venice, like the guy who gets caught in the climax tells, “not just any other place”.

Everything about the movie was mainstream, the actors, the posters and even the name. Very much James Bondish, just that there was no Bond. I’ve always hated Johnny Depp whenever he does this comic role. He’s much better than that. But all people remember of him as Jack Sparrow, an over the top pirate in one of the most-talked-about-movie-to-strike-a-conversation-with-chicks, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’. It beats me till date as to why the film has such huge fan following. ‘Lord of the Rings’ is understandable but why ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’. It was not even fun. But anyways, wish people would look beyond, ‘Pirates of Caribbean’ when they see Johnny Depp, may be a ‘Donnie Brasco’ or a ‘Public Enemies’. Because it feels so bad when a terrific actor like Johnny Depp is being typecast for only his over the top role like Jack Sparrow or the ones in Tim Burtons. At least the latter is fun.

The opening sequence where Elise (Angelina Jolie) is being watched over by the French/Scot police feels like a dig of his own ‘The Lives of Others’. Followed by a sequence where she tries to get a guy of Pearce’s stature which reminds of Bond films. But both the scenes were overdone by Angelina Jolie. Its really tough to criticize her. Something is missing. She was lacking the finesse to execute such scenes but all the admiration in the film as well for the brand that she carries was making it tough to say it out loud. Also, the chemistry between the two doesn’t really work. May be if the whole film had been made in a serious manner with action and less of comedy, I guess at least then it’d have been gripping. Right from the scene where Frank (Johnny Depp) starts running on the roof, the film suffers a setback. Just imagine Tom Cruise doing it. Tom Cruise and runs, a never-ending love story, ain’t it.

There was so eagerness to follow the film initially because of its richness and an element of surprise but to drag it till climax and being illogical in explanation, it became a drag. No part of the film really works, it’s all we’ve already watched. Like the critics worldwide were confused whether it was a serious film or comedy film, I too was, like Vadivelu. The only respite of the film is Venice and to look around the amazing locales. It was like watching a TLC programme. What starts out as an ultimate male fantasy of getting a hot chick, big room and fine dine ends up being a dud because the way the film tries to be clever.