5. Abre Los Ojos
The original Spanish version of Cameron Crowe's 'Vanilla Sky', Abre Los Ojos (Open Your Eyes) often gets lost behind its flashier, American cousin. Tragically, many see the Tom Cruise version before they see Abre Los Ojos and, in a natural human response of 'first is best', stubbornly refuse to accept that it's better. Which (in a moment of bias here) it is. The film sees Eduardo Noriega's handsome playboy become a victim of a car crash involving an unhinged ex-lover. As he comes to terms with his drastic physical injuries, he falls in love with Penelope Cruz (who plays the same role in Vanilla Sky) but refuses to accept he can be with her because of his scars. Slowly his life starts to unravel, leading to paranoia and dreamlike abnormality. Its palliative blend of drama, sci-fi and thriller lends itself to the arcs of its characters and the dramatic twists of its final acts. Both versions are underrated but Abre Los Ojos more so for the inhibiting fact that it's in a foreign language. Whilst many film fans would not find this problematic, the casual viewer might opt to go for the less taxing task of listening without reading. After all, its concepts are not straightforward and the subtitles could leave viewers alienated from the story.