Open Your Eyes review

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After Julio Medem's marvellous Lovers Of The Arctic Circle comes another piece of dazzling film-making from Spain, directed by 25-year-old Alejandro Amenabar.

A disfigured and paranoid young man (Noriega) lies in a prison cell, accused of a murder he can't remember. Interviewed by a psychiatrist, he attempts to recall recent events, beginning with a party where he met the beautiful Sofia (Cruz), and was followed by the infatuated Nuria (Nimri)... The label "psychological thriller" doesn't do justice to the playful, enjoyably perplexing Open Your Eyes. Filled with masks, mirrors and dopplegangers, it erodes the boundaries between reality and fantasy, past and present.

Admittedly, the Vertigo references are overdone and the cryogenic revelations a little underwhelming, and yet throughout it's shot with considerable panache. Amenabar, already at work on a Hollywood feature with Nicole Kidman, is definitely a talent to watch.

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