Jessica Alba stars in this remake of the 2002 Asian horror film, in fact in some places shot for shot. However, the main problem is that it does star Alba and she’s not quite up to snuff in the title role.
Sydney White (Jessica Alba) is a classical violinist who has been blind since the age of five. Now her sister (Parker Posey) is flying into town because Sydney is about to undergo a cornea transplant to regain her sight. When her sight returns her sight is blurred at first, but soon she begins to see shadowy figures that appear to be harbingers of death.
She’s sent to a therapist (Alessandro Nivola) to help her adjust from being in a sightless world to one in which she can see. However, the visions of the dark creatures increase and Sydney starts seeing places and events that are unfamiliar to her. She even sees another’s reflection when she looks in the mirror.
She convinces her therapist to find out who the corneas she received came from and the two drive to Mexico to find out what happened to the young woman who had to die so Sydney could have sight.
The Eye is a remake of the 2002 horror film from the directorial team the Pang Brothers. I guess they thought that the remake needed the same sort of teaming so David Moreau and Xavier Palud direct the remake.
I’m not sure I had any problem with the directing in the film, but there were several scenes that I thought were lifted directly from the original. The duo set the film in the United States with a foray into Mexico instead of the Asian setting of the original.
Where the film suffers is in the performance of Jessica Alba. She seems rather wooden as the lead and really doesn’t have the acting chops to excel in the role. I sometimes wondered if she and Posey were reversed in their roles how it would’ve turned out.
Unfortunately, Alba has the marquee power and she was cast in the lead. The film does offer some chills, but again it’s the same chills that you’ve seen in the original. Being that the original might not have been seen by a majority of the audience then they may be new to you.
Since it has a PG-13 rating my kids sat in on some of the film but my son said “this is boring” and left the room. He didn’t watch the original, but he did come back for the action-packed finale. It’s all Alba’s show. She may be easy on the eyes [insert rimshot here], but her acting ability really isn’t there to carry the role.
The Eye is presented in anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions. A single disc edition is available separately and contains just the film in widescreen and fullscreen.
This two-disc edition contains an eyeful [insert rimshot here] of special features, including 12 minutes of deleted scenes. Next is the 1 minute “Birth of the Shadowman” that highlights the emaciated actor playing the creature. The 4 minute “Becoming Sydney” talks with Alba about the role.
The 8 minute “Shadow World: Seeing the Dead” has a parapsychologist talking about the “real” phenomenon of seeing dead people. The 6 minute “Explosive Finale” looks at how they shot the ending of the film.
Next is the 2 minute theatrical trailer and trailers for other Lionsgate releases. The second disc is an electronic copy of the film that you can download to your PC or portable device.
There are some creepy moments, but it’s pretty obvious that Alba really doesn’t have the acting chops to do well in the role, pretty as she may be. Those that have not seen the original may find some originality here, but those that have will probably be bored.
The Eye (Two-Disc Special Edition) is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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