“The Eye” is the latest in a long series of PG-13 Asian horror remakes, this one based on a 2002 film from Hong Kong. These films (think “The Ring” and “The Grudge”) all seemed to be filmed with a gray filter, feature a pretty woman harassed by ghosts, and do nothing to make me seek out greater films from across the Pacific.
In “The Eye,” Jessica Alba plays Sydney, a blind violinist whose sight is restored through surgery. We’re not bothered with details of her actual blindness, because that would mean that Alba (and presumably her predecessor) would have had to take lessons on how blind people live, which then sap precious time from hour-long stomach crunch sessions.
Alas, sight doesn’t come as much of a blessing to Sydney, because now in addition to seeing how ugly most people are up close, she sees ghosts traipsing around everywhere she goes. Not being a compulsive substance abuser, this development comes as a shock to her, and the ghosts are an unexpected development as well.
The ghosts (or demons, or whatever) appear to haunt her in the hallways of her apartment complex, in the streets, at the hospital, and just about any place where someone has died, which in New York City appears to be everywhere. They even taunt poor Sydney in the shower, a horror setting that should be retired, because it hasn’t been improved since its first appearance in “Psycho,” a film that predates this one by 48 years.
It goes without saying that Dr. Faulkner (Alessandro Nivola), Sydney’s rehab specialist with limitless time on his hands, doesn’t take her seriously. Though not being taken seriously by men is something a gorgeous woman like her should get used to, the ghosts really are a nuisance, and nothing kills a date at the coffee shop like having a vision where everyone around you burns to death, so she seeks out the truth. I would have suggested she buy a large cross and learn Latin, but I suppose that wouldn’t have made much sense to the audience back in Hong Kong.
It’s hard to label a film like this “bad” or “good,” unless the viewer is a fan of the genre. It has excellent production values and a few ups and downs, but mostly it’s a benign treat for the very easily scared, the PG-13 rating an assurance that they won’t have to see anything too icky. Were it possible to scientifically assess the quality of movies, I suspect this one would be rated very favorably, as it perfectly achieves its purpose as a commercial product, though add much to the world of cinema it doesn’t. “The Eye” would likely make a nice 90-minute episode of “The Twilight Zone,” if that series were still on the air and had a budget of $4 million per half-hour. And wasn’t nearly as good.
2.5 out of 5
2 comments:
A few years ago I watched "At first sight." From what I recall of my reaction at the time I thought it was a very interesting take on how a blind person might feel after being granted sight through surgery after a lifetime of darkness.
Good moments of that film include Val Kilmer looking at a horribly graffitied wall and saying "Now this must be art."
Of course, of that same genre of disabled people recovering is 'Awakenings' which had incredible performances from Robin Williams and Robert DeNiro.
I really think that these two examples are proof that recovery movies can be good, well-rounded films without having gimmicky ghosts popping out.
I saw previews for 'The Eye' and thought, so like "sixth sense' only with a hot chick and a distinct lack of bruce willis, I'm sure that will be wonderful.
The film really doesn't have much concern for what it's actually like to be blind or to recover sight; it's all a vehicle for ghost pop-ins.
I thought of "The Sixth Sense" a few times, too. I would be interested in knowing whether or not that movie influenced these Asian horror filmmakers, in turn prompting Americans, destitute of any ideas whatsoever, to churn out chop-scary clones.
Post a Comment