When you think about it, Vanilla Sky was his turning point
...and I don't mean in a good way.
Look, I'm not knocking Vanilla Sky. I liked it okay and it is well done, though extremely esoteric and a HUGE break from Cameron's usual type of story. (not to mention it's not his original, but a remake he did of a European film)
But back to my subject line^..... If you look at all his stuff, from 1980 to 1998, they were all very entertaining. Well done, not boring, and they all seemed to occur in the same 'universe' of cameron crowe. Fast Times, The Wild Life, Say ANything, SIngles, Jerry Maguire, and Almost Famous.
Then Vanilla Sky in 2000. Then... a string of generally unwatchable 'touchy-feely-melodrama' movies: Elizabethtown, We Bought a Zoo, and Aloha.
I just wonder WTH happened between 1998 and 2000 to spin him off his 'normal' footing, which was such a great grasp of story and characters that he seemed almost infallible.
I just SMH when I think about the stinkers he put out after almost famous. It just don't add up!
Anyway, just my .02
Thanks for listening. Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.....