'The Eye' Falls Short of Eye-Catching

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Made in 2008, “The Eye” is a remake of a 2002 Japanese film. Supposedly a horror film, the movie is full of mystery, suspense, and scary images. The story line starts off uniquely, drawing the audience in like a magnet, but the end of the movie spoils it.

The story is about a blind violinist, Sydney Wells, who receives a cornea transplant in hopes of regaining her ability to see.  Sydney’s vision is blurry at first, but as the eyes start functioning better, she begins seeing terrifying visions. She realizes what she is seeing is not reality, and tries to explain it to Paul Faulkner, her visual therapist. Sydney know that, "There have been cases of transplant recipients who've actually shown characteristics of the donor." 

 

Alessandro Nivola

Naturally, Dr. Faulkner struggles to believe Sydney, but eventually decides to help her decipher what is going on. As her visions of death and disaster continue, they realize that Sydney is seeing something that has already happened. 

They trace the story back to Mexico, and discover that the corneas which Sydney has received are from a donor who had lived there. The donor had predicted a disaster in her hometown, but because she was unable to prevent it from happening, resorted to suicide. Because Sydney and Dr. Faulkner had solved the mystery, the woman’s spirit no longer haunted Sydney.

Jessica Alba

Feeling accomplished, Sydney and her therapist begin their journey back home. The audience feels that the movie has ended, but there is more to come. 

While trying to cross the border, Sydney begins to see more visions and realizes that there is yet another disaster. A high speed chase ends in a car crashing into a vehicle that is carrying gasoline near them. Sydney is desperate to get people off the highway and away from danger. The gasoline truck explodes and, once again, blinds Sydney. 

Jessica Alba as Sydney Wells

Through this experience, Sydney has learned to be thankful for her disability. She returns to her life of being a violinist.

Jessica Alba is the star of “The Eye", playing Sydney Wells. Sydney’s therapist, Dr. Paul Faulkner, is played by actor Alessandro Nivola. Parker Posey plays the part of Sydney’s sister, Hellen Wells.

Parker Posey

I found “The Eye” to be a disappointment. I was intrigued by the plot at the start of the movie, but the longer the movie went on, the more I wanted it to end. There were really two stories in the film and they seemed mashed together. The acting was average, but I was not overly impressed. The film barely gets by with a 1.5 out of 5 stars.