Vanilla Sky is better! - Abre los ojos (1997) Discussion

[–] GreyHunter 13 years ago

I like them both about equally. Vanilla Sky was an extremely faithful remake, a rare thing, so the differences between them come down to small things, nuances and details. The music has been mentioned, while I love the "vanilla sky" aspect of the remake. But the original feels a bit more "authentic" to me -- not quite as slick. OTOH, the remake is slightly more disturbing in places, a bit more Jacob's Ladder-ish. I prefer Tom's running leap at the end, more dramatic and visually arresting, but Eduardo's acting overall seemed a bit more understated (a good thing for me) than Tom's (whose acting wasn't bad, don't get me wrong.) And so forth. And I don't care in the least what the respective IMdB ratings are. those are frequently skewed by many factors having nothing to do with the quality of the film (recent popularity, pretention, etc.)

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[–] 13 years ago

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[–] Stratego 13 years ago

What stupid reasoning. Then I could just as well say you and others prefer Vanilla Sky because it's American and you don't like foreign movies (because you're too stupid to understand them or read subtitles).

Ever considered that people prefer Abre los Ojos because it IS better and did you ever consider that some of these people might not be American, so both movies are "foreign" to them?

And how is giving a high rating going to make them look hip and cultured, the rating system here (and other sites) is basically anonymous. I have no idea who these people are.

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[–] Zando777 13 years ago

1. You're correct that people often say the prefer original/foreign films because they think it makes them seem hip/cultured.

2. Foriegners are usually dumber than Americans (which is why they're poorer), so it wouldn't make sense to say Americans don't like foreign films because they don't understand them. Subtitles might be a better explanation.

3. I generally dislike foreign films (low budget, dumb actors/directors, poorly done), and almost always prefer American remakes, which are usually better.

4. That said, I really do think "Open Your Eyes" is superior to "Vanilla Sky", for several reasons. VS, like most American films, is certainly more polished. And Crowe's soundtracks are usually good. But Cruise is just misscast here, and he's annoying to watch. Conversely, OYE just has more raw emotional appeal and connection, despite the rougher edges, and lower production values. The scenes in the park, and in the clubs, simply grab you emotionally. I've never seen a film capture the essence of loneliness and rejection like this one.

And I say this despite hating Penelope Cruz in general.

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[–] Tales-from-the-Goondocks 13 years ago

Spoken like a true ignorant american. The twist in your post is your point number 4, which doesn't go along with your overall innate american ignorance.

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[–] Stratego 13 years ago

Foriegners are usually dumber than Americans (which is why they're poorer)

We're talking about an European movie and I'm pretty sure that at the moment there is more poverty in America than in most EU countries despite the euro crisis.

Europe also has a better education system, as is evident from the fact that you can't spell "foreigners".

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[–] Tales-from-the-Goondocks 13 years ago

Just because you are an ignorant american who can't appreciate foreign art, that doesn't mean people who do like foreign films are saying that they do so just to appear "hip and cultured".

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[–] machieta 13 years ago

I also really like the soundtrack to Vanilla Sky, but I'd say the rest of the movie is pretty bleak next to Abre Los Ojos.

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[–] sandmets22 13 years ago

I can't even compare the two. I found ALO to be far superior. Vanilla Sky added unnecessary additional scenes involving Cesar's company that caused the film to drag. I also felt that Tom Cruise overacted in this.

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[–] LEMONPIE_30 13 years ago

I agree, I like Vanilla Sky a lot better!

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[–] crissttigaldames 9 years ago

Just because you are an ignorant american who can't appreciate foreign art, that doesn't mean people who do like foreign films are saying that they do so just to appear "hip and cultured".

Except your poosts show you're obviously one of those snobs who think they're so hip and cultured and superior to those "ignorant Americans".

Your attitude is even arguably racist.

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[–] Piyei 9 years ago

I like them both. Saw VS waaay before ALO. Both have flaws, gave them both 8/10, but I prefer ALO. Its rawer look and unsympathetic main character fits better to the story IMO.
I can't agree about the soundtrack. VS soundtrack is more "mainstream" and gives a "happier" feel. ALO soundtrack includes music played by the praga philarmonic and features darker and mellower tracks. Again, it fits better IMO.
But, like I said, I like both films

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[–] FridayOnElmStreet 9 years ago

Yeah I like Vanilla Sky better as well.

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[–] prplayer 9 years ago

both are about the same and average at that 6/10

this movie is very superficial, didn't care for the main character

it wasn't a complete waste of time however since i did get to PC's puppies

so many movies, so little time

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