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135 comments in total

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96 out of 152 people found the following comment useful :-
It Could Have Been So Much More..., 2 February 2008

Author: applesauce91-2 from United States

I really wanted this movie to be good. Really. I think Jessica Alba is an extremely talented actress, and I had high hopes for this movie. J horror remake, interesting premise, Jessica Alba...sounds good so far.

But this movie left me disappointed in when I saw it last night. The movie relies on cheap thrills that aren't frightening to the mature moviegoer. I should have expected this, as it was rated PG-13, but the theatre full of screaming 11 year olds at every jump was quite irritating.

When it was all over, The Eye left me wanting more. The only thinking and mystery in the movie is done for you and the "science-talk" from Alba seems unrealistic. It relies on loud noises and horror movie clichés at every turn. The Eye is a definite popcorn movie. It may be entertaining for younger viewers, but if you want a deeper and more engaging story, look elsewhere.

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107 out of 181 people found the following comment useful :-
Cookie cutter rip-off with unneeded changes, 2 February 2008

Author: Evan Snow from United States

If you watch this movie, be aware that Gin-Gwai (The Eye)came first. There have even been two sequels. The third one was called The Eye 10 as a marketing ploy by the US director. It is truly awful, so avoid it like the plague.

That being said, the thing that both US influenced versions have are a total lack of creativity, suspense, or originality. It is a pity that Ms. Alba chose this role, as it was merely a shell of the original film. Every scene was reproduced in a typical US-dumbed down format, with typical cheap Friday the 13th scares thrown in. This version ironically lost sight of the original vision of the Pang Brother's classic. Instead, they change key plot elements to "add to" the suspense, IE: American audiences can't think, so we have to hold up a sign that says "SCREAM".

Do yourself and others a favor and rent, or even better buy a copy of the original. You will not be disappointed. Sadly, the same cannot be said for yet another cheap, unimaginative, 80's camp pile of garbage rip-off in the mold of The Grudge, Hide and Seek, and Dark Water. Don't even waste your time downloading this tripe.

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56 out of 90 people found the following comment useful :-
Blurry around the edges, but still a fine sight, 3 February 2008

Author: Dan Franzen (dfranzen70) from United States

The Eye (2008) I knew going into the theater that this would be a bit scary. OK, maybe traumatizing. I had a LASIK procedure done a couple of years ago, and although I wasn't blind beforehand, I did have pretty bad eyesight. I know a bit about the trepidation - perhaps even outright terror - one feels before undergoing an operation on one's eyeballs. I still get a little skeeved when I see a closeup of eyes, come to think of it.

Jessica Alba plays Sydney, a blind concert violinist who has a double corneal transplant, and of course things go wrong. Not with the surgery itself, but with the psychological aftermath - she sees dead people. And dead things. And undead. And so on; it looks like she's tapped into a spiritual world, or something. No one else can see what she's seeing, which is par for the course in movieland, but all of the demons and smoke and fire and other sfx seem extremely, utterly, real to Sydney.

Alba is excellent, showing that she has more than just two (or three) talents to show the world. Her Sydney is appealing in her vulnerability; Alba, a beautiful young woman, manages to make you feel as if her character could, indeed, live in your world: less glitzy starlet, more three-dimensional person. Of course, she's still a knockout, and she IS a supremely talented musician, and she DOES live in a super-posh apartment in a high rise, but still. Alba shows wonderful range, from tender to fragile, without giving up any sincerity. The movie hinges on her ability to sell the audience on her character's Everywoman (to a point) status, and I think she delivers.

Some of you may be thinking you've already seen this movie before, when it was called Blink. In Blink, Madeline Stowe played a young woman who lost her sight as a child (as did Sydney) and then grew up to be a talented violinist; after a new eye operation temporarily restores some sight, she sees things. Just like Sydney. Huh. Still, this isn't a redo of Blink, it's a remake of a Chinese film called Gin gwai. Asian films have made the rounds of Hollywood in recent years (The Ring, The Grudge, Dark Water), and although the remakes usually don't have the subversive bite of their original counterparts, some of them hold up rather well when inundated with high-tech CGI. The Eye does use special effects, but it uses them - pardon me - to great effect; you're not overwhelmed with attention-grabbing CGI.

The biggest debit in the movie is the love interest, Sydney's doctor, Paul (Alessandro Nivola), who seems dull and unimportant, although his believing in and trusting Sydney is a linchpin for moving the plot. He just seems vacant and stiff, hardly a commendation of Nivola's acting abilities. (Think of a younger Dylan McDermott.) On the other hand, a good counterbalance to Nivola is Parker Posey as Sydney's concerned sister, who, although she doesn't immediately buy into Sydney's rantings, does empathize and attempt to understand a bit better than the hunky doctor.

Overall, The Eye is a tense, shudder-filled movie that manages to dress up a recycled plot with dead-on performances and evocative cinematography.

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88 out of 154 people found the following comment useful :-
Effective scares and an excellent dramatic lead performance from Jessica Alba, 30 January 2008

Author: Max Million from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

In this era of stem cell research, where genetic re-programming results in human heart cells beating in a Petrie dish, perhaps The Eye's premise of cellular memory is not so far-fetched. Blinded during a childhood accident, gorgeous and gifted first violinist Sydney Wells (Jessica Alba) undergoes a corneal transplant. Previously confident in the dark, sweet Sydney's secure world becomes terrifying when she finds she can see not only dead people, but the prophetic visions of the former owner of her newly restored vision.

Everyone around her thinks she's going mad, from her unsympathetic maestro to her concerned sister Helen (played poorly by an underused and under directed Parker Posey) to her conflicted doctor in an underwritten and choppy character arc. (Is Alessandro Nivola playing an eye doctor or a psychoanalyst? Is he a staunch professional or driven by love to cross the line?) Sydney feels compelled to decipher her visions, sensing that if she does, the troubled spirit of the original donor may finally find peace.

Directorial flaws aside, The Eye's strengths lie in its superb visuals, effective scares and, above all, the impressive and convincing performance of its leading lady. Appearing in virtually every scene, Alba has you blinking tears when her eyes sting and second-guessing your own eyes when you see what she sees.

A remake of the Pang Brothers 2002 Hong Kong hit Gin gwai, The Eye is actually a Hollywood rip-off, traversing the familiar territory of recent thriller Blink, 1978's Eyes of Laura Mars and even Roger Corman's 1963 horror pic X: The Man With X-Ray Eyes.

The Eye has satisfying echoes of J horror plus ghost stories such as The Sixth Sense and The Others.

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26 out of 40 people found the following comment useful :-
Mediocre Horror, 25 May 2008

Author: bertbert from UK

OK, so it isn't the best horror movie ever made, but it also isn't the worst.

The premise is reasonable (for a horror) and despite a few plot holes the film manages to build the suspense. Alba's acting is not exactly award winning, but she does enough to avoid you disbelieving the character.

The biggest gripe I have is that the ending is a bit of an anticlimax. After the build up (I think there should have been a bit more with the apartment residents) it just fizzled out.

Overall I wouldn't rush out to buy the DVD, but if there isn't anything else on, you could do worse.

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7 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Not as good as pictured, 16 February 2008

Author: AngryGothChick from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

The trailer made it seem so terrifying,but watching the movie was an eye bleeder.There was no boo factor anywhere,because you saw it coming.This is basically a total hash of The Sixth Sense and Final Destiantion,and the Japanese original looks so much better (I didn't see it yet,but I should).

Plot:Sydney Wells is a happy-go lucky violinist,who is calm,cool and collected.She has been blind since she was five,due to a firecracker accident.When she got a cornea transplant,everything is blurry,and she sees shadows and ghosts taking people away.Now she has to find out who her donor is and why this is happening.

The plot is interesting though,but the suspense is rarely there,unless you are easily scared.The build up to the end is nice,but there is so much unnecessary stuff in it.The only cool scene was the climatic ending on the boarder.

Overall,this move had so much potential but didn't pull all the way through.

Rating ***/***** Overall:4/10

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24 out of 41 people found the following comment useful :-
Another blinking remake!, 25 March 2008

Author: BA_Harrison from Hampshire, England

With virtually every successful Asian horror movie of the last few years having already been remade by Hollywood, it was only a matter of time before Gin gwai (AKA The Eye) got the treatment, despite the original not really being all that great (I found it fairly entertaining, but unexceptional—my rating: 6/10).

Jessica Alba plays Sydney Wells, a blind violinist who receives a cornea transplant only to discover that her new set of peepers allow her to see much more than she had originally bargained for: Sydney can see dead people!! Aided by her doctor, she attempts to unravel the terrible secret behind her scary supernatural power.

Directed by David Moreau and Xavier Palud, The Eye is a totally unnecessary and dreary remake that copies parts of original verbatim, alters scenes that should have been left well alone (the creepy cafe meat-licking scene has gone, and the downbeat ending has been swapped for a typical Hollywood crowd pleaser), and totally botches what should be the scariest bit of the whole film (the lift scene is VERY disappointing).

Take my advice: If you've already seen Gin gwai, then stay away from The Eye.

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25 out of 43 people found the following comment useful :-
A Nutshell Review: The Eye, 24 February 2008

Author: DICK STEEL from Singapore

So I haven't watched the original Eye movie by the Pang Brothers, but I guess with remakes these days, it doesn't really matter, since most of the time, the Hollywood remade version pales in comparison with the original, despite having a bigger budget, bigger stars and of course, better visual effects. And what almost always seem woeful, is the attempt to try and recreate the atmospherics for a spook fest that Asian horror had perfected, and I'm inclined to suggest that they should adapt the storyline (since there's a creative dearth of ideas), but leave the mimicking of mood at the door.

This is probably the first movie that Jessica Alba marquees, and comparisons would be abound for those who've watched the original to compare her to Angelica Lee's performance. But really, I don't think it matters, since all you need to do is to look scared. As blind violinist Sydney, Alba escapes the need to act blind given the cop out of using shades, coupled with the fact that her transplanted eyes allow for the camera to be out of focus for the most parts.

Things start to get interesting when she begins to see shadowy figures borrowed straight out of Pulse (yet another Asian horror remake), and these all get conveniently debunked by her doctor Paul (Alessandro Nivola who stars as the hopeless, formless Gavin Harris in the Goal movies), because if you're blind for so many years, your brain needs some major time out to absorb all the new sights you're constantly bombarded with. So goes as with standard horror fare, that those who can see spirits when others can't, are classified as nutcases. Alba's no scream queen as the proceedings don't allow her to exercise her lungs, and I swear there are just too many of those waking up from nightmare moments, and the clock ticking around 1:05am.

But credit is due though to the scenes which aim to frighten, and some did hit the mark even though they're the usual tools to surprise from the bag of Boo tricks. There are, to me, a major unexpected moment which I had to nod in acknowledgement of not seeing it coming (I had thought otherwise), but unfortunately, that was it. The latter half of the journey became a road trip movie which seeked answers, coupled with Hollywood's preoccupation of having to explain and show everything, leaving little to your imagination since everything was spelt out. While the story's not at fault, the way it's presented made this look like a standard mystery thriller, without the mystery, and without the thrills.

And the finale was a little lacklustre as it seemed to be styled in Final Destination fashion, making it look like it had no more rabbits to pull out of the hat. The Eye had plenty of neat visual effects, and although there are some beautiful stunts involving glass shards and the walking through of objects, special effects alone do not make a horror movie spine-chilling. Looks like there's some major sty in this eye.

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41 out of 77 people found the following comment useful :-
A review by someone who hasn't seen the original., 5 February 2008

Author: Dawn_Of_The_Hippies

Since everyone who has seen this movie has seen the original (and upon reading the reviews here in IMDb I can safely say, everyone), I on the other hand haven't. Why you ask? I'm just tired of Asian Horror, it's always more of the same. After viewing this awfully boring remake, all I can say is that I will go to the local video store and rent the Pang Brothers version, and since this is a half-assed remake, I doubt that they changed anything from the original story, which was the only thing that kept me from feeding this pile of dung a lower score.

So, David Moreau and Xavier Palud decided to go mainstream huh?. It seems talented directors have to go and make movies in Hollywood nowadays, its sort of becoming a routine. Oliver Hirschbiegel did Downfall, which is a masterpiece, and then he went on to direct The Invasion, which was an incredibly mediocre update to a classic. Eric Vallete directed Malefique, one of the best horror films to ever come out of France, and then he went on to direct a remake of Takashi Miike's crappy One Missed Call, which had an even worse result. Hell, even Hideo Nakata remade his own sequel to the Ring, which was horrible, so the list goes on and on.

If this is Jessica Alba's best performance, then I don't want to see her worst. Horrendous acting, beating even Ben Affleck for the prestigious "Worst representation of a blind person captured on screen" award. She delivers her lines so infuriatingly bad, that I wanted to gouge my eyes out (She wasn't even in a bikini for crying out loud). Get this through your head Jessica Alba fans: She gets hired because of her looks, not her acting. The supporting cast was laughable, Parker Posey as Jessica's sister? Horrendous casting decisions.

Now, the only thing scary in this movie was Alba's performance and nothing else. The cheap scares in this one get old, very quick. A mysterious man with his back turned against a wall? Haven't seen that one before. A ghost disappears, then suddenly he jumps at you out of nowhere with the requisite loud sound effect? That is original indeed. Creepy looking Asian kid? Haha c'mon writers, you can do better than this. At least do a creepy looking Brazilian kid or Puerto Rican kid or a black kid, something we haven't seen for once. I know this is an Asian remake, but please, think for a change, with the writers strike going on, anyone would think that you writers had some free time to make up original ideas, not the same cliché that we see each and every year over and over and over and over...and over AGAIN!

Overall: Do not waste your time on this. This passes as Horror? It isn't even scary. It's not even a passable remake, it is just a bad one. You'll get bored by seeing the same empty hallways, the same cheap scares, the same bland performances, the sameness of it all really. Waste your time on something else. A 2/10, avoid.

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6 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
A Monkey Theorum Movie, 26 May 2009

Author: simon-prometheus from Canada

The infinite monkey theorem states that a monkey hitting keys at random on a typewriter for an infinite amount of time will eventually produce the works of Shakespeare. Coincidently, this same theory applies to the onslaught of Asian horror remakes that is stomping Hollywood into submission. If enough of these films are remade, then eventually one will be acceptable, and alas it has happened.

The Eye, starring Jessica Alba is directed by two relative first timers by the names of David Moreau and Xavier Palud, and they can certainly create a film that boasts certain elements of stylish direction. Unfortunately, along with the good, it seems that all of this style of remake fear deviation from a backbone template. Not to give anything away to those who are not familiar with Asian horror remakes, but one element that is consistent is that the basis of all the evil happenings is from a spirit looking for salvation of some sort. While The Eye, does choose to spin this cliché slightly, it is afraid to go all the way.

Suffering from total blindness after a childhood accident, young beauty Sydney Wells (Alba) is given a chance at an eye transplant that will allow her to see for the first time in decades. Not surprisingly, she begins to see things that ought not to be. Aided by an appointed shrink, played by Alessandro Nivola, they confront the visions and try to track the donor eyes back to their sinister source. This journey is bounds more intelligent then the average horror story, and the standard for dumb decisions is cleverly hidden by the fact that Sydney is fully or partially blind for most of the film. This presents a cushion of forgives per se, as her lack of sight can lead her into frightening situations, without appearing ignorant.

And there are certainly some frightening "boo" moments; uniquely accentuated by a well used pallet of sound. There are also exactly three expertly executed scenes, worthy of recognition. The first is a scene in which a blurry eyed Sydney looks into the mirror for the first time with creepy consequences; the second features a member of the un-dead accompanying her in an elevator and the third takes the form of an intervention between a mother who has recently lost her son. If The Eye had presented more scenes of this Claiborne, it certainly could have been something special. Instead, the ending descends into the mediocrity, which at first seemed more then acceptable, but took off into a sixth sense meets final destination action spin off; which although still thrilling, did not fit the tone and atmosphere of the former acts. The "blurry vision" that is used early on with some skill, is overused by the end, the flashbacks replace the more effective quick cutbacks and it simply does not hold onto its success.

This is however Alba's best performance, and although not saying much, this shows there is hope for her future acting career. While more films like The Eye would be welcome, I think it better to forfeit the Asian remakes all together, then to wait for the monkey's second draft.

Read all my reviews at: http://www.simonsaysmovies.blogspot.com

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