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Star Power. 1. the quality an actor possesses that allows him or her to grab an audience's attention through sheer force of personality. see John Wayne, Marilyn Monroe, Jack Nicholson, etc. 2. the quality an actor
possesses that allows him or her to dictate how a movie will be made (i.e., who will direct, who will write the script, who will star alongside).

The first aspect of star power has been around since the early days of narrative film, when Rudolph Valentino and Clara Bow captured America's imagination. The second aspect is a more recent phenomenon. Until the
mid-60s, the major studios in conjunction with powerful producers determined how movies were made. Sure, the big stars might have some input, but they were usually under contract and did as they were told. When that
system broke down, however, the ground rules changed, and, over the years, the big-name actors have gained more and more power. Witness last weekend's announcement that Arnold (does he even need a last name?) will get $30 million to star in Terminator 3.

While George Clooney and Tom Cruise might not be pulling down $30 million a picture, they each have star power to spare. Both have a winning charisma that leaps off the screen, and both have used that charisma to shape their own careers. Interestingly, both have movies in theaters that highlight the positive and negative aspects of star power.

Clooney has built his film career on an affable persona (O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Perfect Storm) and exquisite good looks. Since he had reached the place where he could do whatever he wanted, he decided to get his friends together and do a remake of the Rat Pack movie Ocean's Eleven. Trading on that star power, he lined up Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, Elliot Gould, and Carl Reiner. Lest the movie be devoid of estrogen, uber-babe and Clooney friend Julia Roberts is along for the ride. Helping organize this potpourri is Steven Soderbergh, Clooney's Out of Sight director.

Cruise has built his film career on an affable persona (Jerry Maguire, Top Gun) and exquisite good looks. Since he had reached the place where he could do whatever he wanted, he decided to star in a remake of a Spanish
romantic thriller. Trading on that star power, he lined up Penelope Cruz and Cameron Diaz to be his leading ladies. Lest the movie be limited to contenders for People Magazine's Sexiest, Jason Lee and Kurt Russell are
along for the ride. Helping organize this potpourri is Cameron Crowe Cruise's Jerry Maguire director.

Yes, there are a lot of similarities between the two projects, but there are also some important differences. Ocean's Eleven is a slight, little picture that wants nothing more than to entertain its audience and creators, though not necessarily in that order. You see, Danny Ocean (Clooney) has just gotten out of jail and he's already thinking of his next big con. But this isn't your ordinary big con. This is a BIG CON--the stealing $150 million from the most powerful casino owner in Vegas kind of con. To pull it off, he's going to need some help.

So, he lines up right-hand man Rusty Ryan (Pitt), pickpocket extraordinaire Linus Caldwell (Damon), Cockney bomb expert Basher Tarr (Cheadle), professional card dealer Frank Catton (Bernie Mac) and the old pro Saul
Bloom (Carl Reiner). Helping back the operation is the flamboyant Reuben Tishkoff (Gould). Where does Julia fit into all this? Well, she's the main squeeze of casino owner Terry Benedict (Garcia) as well as Ocean's ex-wife.
In other words, she's the frosting on top of the dough.

The set up to Ocean's Eleven is great fun. For such a big star, Clooney is amazingly generous to his fellow actors, often allowing them the better lines and set-ups. If nothing else, there aren't many actors who have the
self-confidence to cast uber-babes like Brad Pitt and Andy Garcia. I can hear my sister drooling from here. For me, though, the best part of Ocean's Eleven are the smaller roles. Elliot Gould has one of the greatest movie
entrances of the year as he appears poolside dressed in an open vest and way too much gold jewelry. Carl Reiner reminds us once again of his comic prowess. And Bernie Mac continues to impress with his rapid-fire delivery.

Unfortunately, like many of this year's heist films, the movie slows down just as the con gets under way. As anyone familiar with The Sting could tell you, that ain't right. The problem is that the strength of Ocean's
Eleven is in its characters. Once the plot takes over, the movie has little of value. Furthermore, the film is such a star vehicle for stars having a good time, no one seemed to notice the total lack of dramatic tension. My
friend Garth couldn't remember a thing about it the next day, and he usually has a good memory.

Vanilla Sky is, for better or worse, a movie that's stuck with me since I saw it last week. Tom Cruise plays David Aames, a young CEO that the press kit describes as "handsome, wealthy, and charismatic," though it's not entirely clear whether that's referring to Aames or Cruise. Aames has inherited his father's publishing empire, but he'd rather tool around with grungy friend Brian (Jason Lee) and bed attractive women like Julie
(Cameron Diaz).

Aames is suddenly brought into focus one night, though, when he meets the guileless Sofia (Penelope Cruz). He follows her back to her place, and they spend a magical night drawing each other's portrait and sharing deep
thoughts like "every passing minute is another chance to turn it all around." The night ends the next morning with David and Sofia sharing a tentative kiss. But when Aames steps outside and finds Julie waiting for
him, things go quickly downhill.

Vanilla Sky is told using an intricate flashback structure. This is further complicated by the fact that many scenes turn out to be dreams or fantasies or nightmares or irrelevant. All the while, David Aames spends part of the movie in jail wearing a ridiculous-looking latex mask. I usually enjoy ambiguous narratives, but this one is so confusing to follow I found myself giving up halfway through. Of course, this being a Hollywood picture, the
movie's last twenty minutes is a point-by-point explanation of everything that's happened before, told exclusively through wooden, expository monologues.

If I sound down on the film, it's not because it's terrible. It's because it's frustrating. There are a number of provocative elements in Vanilla Sky: is it possible to change your life? what is the relationship of fantasy and reality? how important is your image to your self-image? Unfortunately, those are only fitfully explored. Cameron Crowe was not a good choice to direct the project. Crowe is great in sunny films like Almost Famous and Jerry Maguire, but his sensibilities are all wrong for this one. His insistence on including favorite songs from the '60s and '70s is just indicative. And Tom Cruise is either in full-smile mode or look-at-me-I'm-an-actor mode. It's that sort of star power Vanilla Sky could do without. 

Ocean's Eleven 
Vanilla Sky 

J. Robert Parks 12/10/2001