Abre los Ojos (1997)

Directed by Alejandro Amenábar. Starring Eduardo Noriega, Chete Lera, Penélope Cruz, Fele Martínez, Najwa Nimri, Gérard Barray, Tristán Ulloa. [R]

Life is good for young, successful and handsome Noriega, but his world comes crashing down around him after a car crash leaves him disfigured, spoiling a potential relationship with a young woman (Cruz) he just met. A shallow, even juvenile attempt to explore big life questions, crippled by the vanity of its protagonist—he’s so willfully unlikable, the audience is kept at arm’s length from his suffering, and it’s a mystery as to why anyone besides his disturbed ex-lover (an obsessed stalker) and a concerned psychologist (doing his job) would give him the time of day, regardless of the literal/metaphorical mask he’s wearing. The shift to mind-bending science fiction down the home stretch could have been intriguing if it weren’t presented so awkwardly and, considering its vortex of possibilities, timidly. Only the luminous Cruz is worth watching in this sketchy misfire. English-language title translation: “Open your eyes.” Remade in the U.S. in 2001 as Vanilla Sky.

44/100