Open Your Eyes (1997)
"Abre los ojos" (original title)

A very handsome man finds the love of his life, but he suffers an accident and needs to have his face rebuilt by surgery after it is severely disfigured.

Director:

Alejandro Amenábar

Writers:

Alejandro Amenábar, Mateo Gil

Stars:

Eduardo Noriega, Penélope Cruz, Chete Lera

5 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Eduardo Noriega	...	César
Penélope Cruz	...	Sofía
Chete Lera	...	Antonio
Fele Martínez	...	Pelayo
Najwa Nimri	...	Nuria
Gérard Barray	...	Duvernois
Jorge de Juan	...	Encargado L.E.
Miguel Palenzuela	...	Commisario
Pedro Miguel Martínez	...	Médico Jefe
Ion Gabella	...	Recluso paranoico
Joserra Cadiñanos	...	Guardia
Tristán Ulloa	...	Camarero
Pepe Navarro	...	Presentador T.V.
Jaro	...	Médico 1
Walter Prieto	...	Médico 2

Storyline

The handsome and wealthy César is very successful with women and is having difficulties getting rid of Nuria, his last affair. His best friend, Pelayo, is unlucky with women and jealous of César. At his birthday party, César meets the gorgeous and sexy Sofia, currently dating Pelayo, but they are immediately attracted to each other and spend the night together in her apartment. The next morning, César finds Nuria outside of Sofia's building, and he accepts her offer of a ride home. However, she commits suicide, crashing her car against a wall, but César survives the crash with his face completely disfigured. The doctors do not have the technology to restore his face and César is absolutely depressed and missing Sofia. One night, César meets Sofia and Pelayo in a bar but he drinks too much and passes out on the street. However, the next morning, Sofia finds César on the street and kisses him, telling that she loves him. Then the doctors tell him that they are able to fix his face. Out ...

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Plot Keywords:

love | doctor | suicide | drink | friend | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some strong sexuality, language and some violence

Details

Country:

Spain France Italy

Language:

Spanish

Release Date:

19 December 1997 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Permanent Midnight

Filming Locations:

Madrid, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

ESP 370,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$38,289 (USA) (16 April 1999)

Gross:

$368,234 (USA) (18 June 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Canal+ España, Las Producciones del Escorpión S.L., Les Films Alain Sarde

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tom Cruise said that he was on his mobile phone trying to buy the remake rights during the end credits the first time he saw the film.

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Goofs

A crew member is reflected in the car window when César picks up Pelayo for tennis.

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Quotes

[Repeated line.]
Nuria: Open your eyes.

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Connections

References The Elephant Man (1980)

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Soundtracks

"Flying Away"
Written by Marc Lee Brown, C. Franck, Nina Isabela Rocha Miranda
Performed by Smoke City

User Reviews

Astonishing....and really depressing

Go see this film. Now. I'll wait.

Okay, this film is truly one of the most excellent mixtures of genres I have ever seen. It will leave you truly moved, truly surprised, and truly depressed. That's okay, though, because this is such a wonderful movie. The film centers around the life of a rich and handsome young man after a disfiguring accident. We are taken along as he tries to find a way to grow accustomed to a life without the things he relied on (mainly looks) before. After hitting rock bottom, things start to get better for him, and it is here that the seamless weaving of genres occur. I don't want to give too much away, but the film constantly keeps you on your toes and never grows dull. "Abre los Ojos" is a truly stunning love story, psychological thriller, and science fiction film all rolled into a flawless whole. Do yourself a favor and see it before the Cameron Crowe remake, "Vanilla Sky", does to this film what "City of Angels" did to "Wings of Desire".