Vanilla Sky

Work Title: Vanilla Sky
Medium: Film
Episode Title:
Year: 2001
Writer(s): Cameron Crowe
"Original" Writer: Yes Writer(s): Alejandro Amenábar
"Original" Writer: Yes Writer(s): Mateo Gil
"Original" Writer: Yes Own work?: Yes
Summary:

Vanilla Sky (2001) (film) "Vanilla Sky (the name refers to a painting by Monet) is the quirkily titled American remake of the 1997 Spanish language feature, Open Your Eyes. Like its predecessor, Vanilla Sky is a mind-bending excursion across genres - a warped fairy tale that dabbles in romance, mythology, horror, mystery, and science fiction. There are plenty of philosophical musings on the difference between dreams and reality, and numerous occasions in which the film dares us to tell them apart. Vanilla Sky gives new meaning to the familiar phrase from a children's song: 'Life is but a dream.' "(from http://movie-reviews.colossus.net/movies/v/vanilla_sky.html) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Era/Year of Portrayal: present_day
Distinctive characteristics of the world in portrayal:

Present Day

Technology

  • Name of portrayed presence-evoking technology: Lucid Dream
  • Description of the technology: David Aames is cryogenically frozen after death, and dropped into a dream world, called Lucid Dream. It seems very real to him. We are not shown the specifics on how it works, bu the quality it produces is a facsimilie of realty.
  • Nature of task or activity: Everything that occurs in daily life.
  • Performance of the Technology: It works well for a while, then malfunctions - David's subconscious enters the dream world, and it becomes a nightmare.
  • Description of creator(s): unknown, although the woman who sells it is very attractive, in a classy, ladylike fashion.
  • Major goal(s) of creator(s): Probably for profit.
  • Description of users of technology: The only person we know who uses Lucid Dream is the character played byTom Cruise. Male, age 33, very wealthy, led the "perfect life" until a tragic accident scarred his face. His depression led him to the presence technology.
  • Type(s) of presence experience in the portrayal: both
  • Description of presence experience: the experience is pleasent until it becomes a nightmare. His subconscience alters what he sees in the dream state and he ends up killing his girlfriend and then in prison.
  • User awareness of technology during experience: He is unaware the majority of the time. By the end, he figures it out and can choose to remain in the dream state, or awaken.
  • Valence of experience: It was pleasant at first, but took a bad turn later.
  • Specific responses: In this case, the person was in reality frozen during the lucid dream. The film does not show us his state upon waking. However, the lucid dream does affect his mental state, making him think that he is insane, until he figures out that it is not real.
Long-term consequences:

The ending is both happy and sad. He has given up the love of his life who exists in the lucid dream, but in giving her up, has embraced real life.

Other:

Coder name: Amanda Scheiner
Coder email: amandags@temple.edu
Coder affiliation: Temple University