Open Your Eyes, the film which inspired 'Vanilla Sky', is a reasonable watch, not least just to watch a young Penelope Cruz (in 'all her glory', as well). Certainly intriguing and keeps you guessing. I won't declare it's better or worse than Vanilla Sky, because I didn't really go much on that film.

Only reason I'm giving this 4.5 stars instead of 5 is because the remake "Vanilla Sky" actually managed to out do it. If this were the only version, it would be 5 stars.

I watched this after "Vanilla Sky", and this is the original and much better than the American remake. It's more sympathetic and better narrative. Less entertaining but just right for the psychological sci-fi story. Now I think that another problem of the American one was casting.

A memorable twist to be sure but the psychological storytelling, which really gets into the weeds regarding deep seated masculine desires and fears, is far more compelling.

Magnificent film that got a remake in Vanilla Sky. Noriega, Cruz, Martínez, Nimri. all excellent in their roles. Maybe confusing at first, but very well constructed.

What a mind bender! It's a bit hard to follow at the end but this Spanish psychothriller has all the twists and turns of a Hitchcock movie. Penelope Cruz is gorgeous and very nude in this movie early in her career. The ending is a bit hard to rationalize but definitely worth 2 hours. You'll be gripped from beginning to end.

This is quite a sinister mystery thriller film, with a number of intriguing plot twists. It reminded me, if but slightly, of the Mel Gibson film The Man Without a Face. Its rather slow in building plot and its certainly not full of action but as a character driven drama, its not too bad. I wouldn't say its entirely gripping, certainly not for the most part but it features some decent performances and its a somewhat thought provoking I guess. This won't be to everyones taste I imagine - it may be a little bland and perhaps its a bit unoriginal for some people but its certainly not a bad film, so I'd recommend it overall I suppose, yes.

What do you get when you throw together mental illness, perceptions of one's self, cryogenics, murder, the subconscious mind, dreamscapes, déjà vu and possibly some sort of time travel, all neatly wrapped up at the climax, for the most part? Probably something that Christopher Nolan should aspire to. Director Alejandro Amenabar's Open Your Eyes is a mind-bending journey through the life of Cesar, (Eduardo Noreiga) a wealthy, narcissistic young man whose life is altered when a spurned lover involves him in a horrific car crash, horribly disfiguring him. Equal parts confounding and intriguing, this is probably a movie that needs to be seen twice to fully grasp all of the intricacies. It's worth watching for the complexity of the story, some solid performances, including that of Penelope Cruz as Cesar's primary love interest, and some interesting visuals.

Simple but engaging filming. Honest but some would say plain style of cinematography. Really strong story and direction. The concept plays with the mind. It is far more charming than the remake. There are a few slow moments that weren't needed. Not as good as other rubber-reality movie. So glad that the star was not Tom Cruise who is immediately dislikeable. They speak fast which means that you have to read fast but so long as you can concentrate it's not a problem. I totally fell in love with Penélope Cruz. It plays on your mind making multiple viewing pointless but still very enjoyable.

Though it is largely faithful in terms of narrative, Vanilla Sky seems pretty inconsequential compared to its Spanish-language original, one of the first films to apply the 'questionable reality' premise to the emerging virtual world. Amenábar's premise is ultimately revealed to be somewhat straightforward in conception, but it's the gripping sense of confusion that he is able to impart on the audience that sells the film, a frustrating sense of being in the shoes of someone with a shaky grip on reality. He establishes characters, settings, and relationships before backtracking and calling individual elements into question, letting you wonder where the lies begin in a great use of the unreliable narrator device. Watching it after Vanilla Sky is always going to be a bit of a letdown because the stories are essentially identical, but where that adaptation gives off the sense of being somewhat restrictive and lukewarm, Open Your Eyes feels genuinely unsettling at times, due to some tight editing and good performances from Cruz and particularly Noriega. (3.5/5)

Oh so Vanilla Sky is an adaptation from this movie? So ominous how empty the streets are in such a big city. Penelope Cruz, such a pretty gal. Goddamn this chick in the red Chinese get up and the short bob haircut is so cringe. I dislike her character. I feel like she keeps pulling Cesar down the wrong path. She's like a lustful demon trying to get him to come down to hell with her. Wtf is going on? This is so disorienting. Damn that sucks, he looks like the Phantom of the Opera. Great soundtrack! I can't believe they were playing Risingson by Massive Attack in the club! And a really dope looking club at that. Pretty sad and depressing in its themes. Jeez, nothing is what it seems in this movie. I honestly wasn't expecting the way the movie shifted from a pretty normal plot to all of a sudden a surrealistic nightmare. I think that's what kept me engaged. I wanted to see what was going to happen next. The way the theory of life vs dream is presented is done in a very original way but the whole existential dilemma Cesar goes through leaves you not really caring about any of the characters from the beginning. You lose any connection you had with any of the characters since nothing really matters anymore since it was a dream during the last half of the movie and that kind of pulls me out of the whole experience. The movie asks some very hard hitting questions about what is real and what isn't and definitely left me thinking after the credits rolled. Are we living in a dream? Are we not?

1001 movies to see before you die. This must have been unique when it was made, but i struggled to care about half way through. It was on amazon.

A movie that has something to say and a story to tell, refreshing !

El segundo largometraje de A. Amenábar peca inexpertamente de intentar ser demasiadas cosas a la vez. Drama romántico, thriller psicológico y hasta fantasía de ciencia ficción. No es una película perfecta, pero sí es una historia increíblemente original que desafía las posibilidades del cine para emocionar y sorprender. Un clásico del cine español de fin del siglo anterior, que se siente más bien como de comienzos del nuevo.

One of the greatest movies of all time.

What a trip. Many years and thousands of movies ago I watched "Vanilla Sky" and I loved it. Only now I find out it was a remake (and taking in considerations that I live in Spain is pretty bad). The story is great, and thinking that came out even before Matrix it's amazing. Sure, the US version is more pop, more glamorous, but I am so glad I finally saw the "soul" of the movie in this amazing Spanish original version!

clever physiological thriller exploring the collision between dreams and reality. An infatuated woman Nuria tries to kill Cesar after he starts to date Sofia. after the crash Cesar begins to lose is memory and believe Sofia is the women he loves and not nuria as his mind becomes confused. The remake was 'Vanilla sky' with Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz and penelope cruz

Remade as Vanilla Sky, Abre Los Ojos is a strange tale about vanity and identity from Spanish writer/director Alejandro Amenábar. Cesar is a rich playboy who falls for the enigmatic Sofia. However, he is being pursued by Nuria, a sexually predatory and jealous woman and her passion will lead to tragic consequences...except nothing is quite what it seems. This is a complex, disturbing, psychological thriller that doesn't always quite work but come pretty damn close. Penelope Cruz is simply enchanting as Sofia, stealing each and every frame she is in, running rings around a rather starchy and unlikable Eduardo Noriega as Cesar. This is definitely a strange movie with a bizarre and fantastical plot that poses far more questions than it answers.

Alejandro Amenabar co-writes and directs Abre los ojos (Open Your Eyes). Eduardo Noriega is Cesar, a wealthy playboy who is currently fooling around with Nuria (Najwa Nimri). When his best friend Pelayo (Fele Martinez) brings his friend Sofia (Penelope Cruz) to his birthday party, he believes its love at first sight. The two connect and the next morning Nuria picks him for a car ride. In a jealous rage Nuria drives them into a wall killing herself, and severely scaring his face. His life spirals into a depression, and the story then shifts to him interviewing a psychiatrist (Chete Lera) in a murder case. At this point of the film, the audience puts you in the point of view of the main character as we are as confused as he is. The concept of the main character sharing the same perspective of being lost as the audience is the brilliance of this film. Cesar seems to have only one constant in his life and that is his love and desire for Sofia. Between the murder, dreams, and circumstances, Cesar is not even able to determine reality which then of course makes him question his own sanity. For many people, this is an audience turn off as they want to know what is going on in a film at all times. Even if the audience does not like the direction it cannot be denied that the story is interesting and very original. Penelope Cruz was an extremely sexy and was the perfect dreamy like character to play the role of Sofia. The film is a bit raw and is undoubtedly confusing, but this is part of what makes the film for such an entertaining view. The direction keeps the film at a good pace, but with the exception of Sofia and the psychiatrist, the few other characters seem a bit too distant and underwritten. Despite this, Cesar's journey is intriguing enough, and the film keeps you guessing and ends with a conclusion that hardly anyone could predict. I did see this film after watching the film Vanilla Sky, which is a remake of this film. Having seen Vanilla Sky first, and knowing the ending of course and many of the matching scenes, naturally has a huge impact on a film of this type. I cannot help but wonder how much more or less I would have enjoyed this film had I seen it first. Comparing the two films is difficult as they have quite a different feel and look to them. The stories are similar, but there are notable differences in the characters, and the locations differ between Madrid and New York City. Open Your Eyes has a much darker, and raw element to it. Vanilla Sky has a much more polished and lucid look and feel to it, and in my opinion does improve on some of the story elements of Open Your Eyes. These elements include the conspiracy theory aspect that this film alludes to Cesar's partners. The aspect of Cruise being a publishing mogul gave the character a better sense of entitlement and wealth, that was missing from Cesar being with a catering company. The friend Pelayo is also given more depth in Vanilla Sky. Despite these differences, Open Your Eyes certainly stands on its own merit for its solid direction and original story. -9.28.2016

Intelligent psychological thriller. Excellent Spanish film.