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The Eye

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The Eye (2008)

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Reviews Counted:74

Fresh:16

Rotten:58

Average Rating:4.3/10

Consensus: Featuring wooden performances and minimal scares, The Eye is another tedious remake of an Asian horror film.

Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

US Box Office: $31,397,498

Synopsis: THE EYE adapts the influential 2002 Hong Kong ghost tale by the Pang brothers into a star vehicle for Jessica Alba. While it remains faithful to the original story, this version ups the number of... THE EYE adapts the influential 2002 Hong Kong ghost tale by the Pang brothers into a star vehicle for Jessica Alba. While it remains faithful to the original story, this version ups the number of jolts for thrill-seeking Western audiences. Writing/directing team David Moreau and Xavier Palud, creators of the popular 2006 French thriller THEM, make their U.S. debut with a screenplay by Sebastian Gutierrez (SNAKES ON A PLANE), putting a few new twists on a cult favorite. Concert violinist Sydney Wells (Alba) has been blind since she was five, when an accident involving firecrackers damaged her corneas. Now in her mid-20s, she has just undergone a transplant, a risky procedure that is not always successful. When the bandages come off, her sight slowly returns, and everything she sees is a new experience. A happy occasion becomes terrifying, though, when she begins to see horrifying visions of the dead. Fearing that she's losing her sanity, she enlists the help of Dr. Paul Faulkner (Alessandro Nivola), who uncovers the identity of the donor of her new corneas and travels with her to Mexico to unravel the mystery of her horrific visions. Spare and effective, THE EYE retains the two most startling sequences from the original film--a truly chilling floating dead man in an elevator and an elaborate, explosive set piece at the conclusion. Moreau, Palud, and Gutierrez jazz the story up in other spots, with quick scares, sharp music cues, and twitchy apparitions reminiscent of those in JACOB'S LADDER, but the essence remains the same. Alba is fine as damsel in distress Sydney, and the always-enjoyable Parker Posey is uncharacteristically low-key as her airline hostess sister. With no gore or anything else objectionable, the film may also be good choice for younger viewers who enjoy a good scare. [More]

Starring: Jessica Alba, Parker Posey, Alessandro Nivola

Starring: Jessica Alba, Parker Posey, Alessandro Nivola

Director: David Moreau, Xavier Palud

Director: David Moreau, Xavier Palud
Screenwriter: Sebastian Gutierrez
Producer: Tom Cruise, Paula Wagner
Composer: Angelo Badalamenti
Studio: Lions Gate Films

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Reviews for The Eye

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Seeing is disbelieving.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine Australasia | comment Comment
03/20/08
Luke Goodsell
Luke Goodsell
Empire Magazine Australasia
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It creates a good atmosphere, but no tension. The movie is just not memorable.

Full Review Source: Sin Magazine | comment Comment
07/22/08
Austin Kennedy
Austin Kennedy
Sin Magazine

It's all based on the creepy little Chinese film Gin gwai, an atmospheric spine-tingler that, we're sad to say, is considerably more frightening than this tame effort.

Full Review Source: IGN Movies UK | comment Comment
07/14/08
Orlando Parfitt
Orlando Parfitt
IGN Movies UK

Terrible direction, forgettable performances, and writers who are so faithful to the source material that they even pick up the original film's plot holes...

Full Review Source: Cinema Crazed | comment Comment
07/05/08
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Felix Vasquez Jr.
Cinema Crazed

...ultimately establishes itself as the most effective endeavor of its kind since 2005's Dark Water.

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
06/18/08
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

...it doesn't leave us with much more than a feeling that we've been there and seen it all before.

Full Review Source: DVDTown.com | comment Comment
06/16/08
John J. Puccio
John J. Puccio
DVDTown.com

A terrifying treat for horror junkies, as Alba's nervous wreck visionary wards off being attacked by apartments and restaurants, while dealing with a bad case of occult organ rejection.

Full Review Source: NewsBlaze | comment Comment
05/29/08
Prairie Miller
Prairie Miller
NewsBlaze

With every twist of the second-hand plot telegraphed far in advance, you don't need to be clairvoyant to see where this is going.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
04/25/08
Neil Smith
Neil Smith
BBC

Effectively creepsome until it bogs down somewhat in plot explication.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
04/25/08
Dennis Harvey
Dennis Harvey
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Alba simply isn't good enough to carry this kind of movie, and lacks the presence to counter the major deficiencies of a weak and feeble ghost story.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
04/25/08
Channel 4 Film

One can’t turn a blind eye to such conspicuous failings.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
04/25/08
Nigel Floyd
Nigel Floyd
Time Out

There are a couple of effective scares, but this feels like a retread too far. Enough with J-horror already - let’s do something new.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
04/25/08
Helen OHara
Helen OHara
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lionsgate has delivered a solid PG-13 horror film that's both entertaining and suspenseful... and for those of you who don't like it, there will be more SAW on October 24.

Full Review Source: Bloody Disgusting | comment Comment
04/17/08
Brad Miska
Brad Miska
Bloody Disgusting

The latest American remake of an Eastern import in which the thrills have been hopelessly squandered in translation, replaced with distracting, rapid-fire camerawork and thunderous bumps in the night that reflect a kind of creative desperation.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
04/10/08
Rossiter Drake
Rossiter Drake
San Francisco Examiner

it could have been worse

Full Review Source: sbs.is | comment Comment
04/09/08
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
Stefan Birgir Stefansson
sbs.is

Transforming Asian horror into American horror isn't so bad when the filmmakers respect the source material.

Full Review Source: Atlantic City Weekly | comment 1 Comment
03/27/08
Lori Hoffman
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly

t probably goes without saying that the self-involved, privileged Sydney would pay scant attention to the violence and poverty that make up life in Ana's pueblo.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
03/21/08
Cynthia Fuchs
Cynthia Fuchs
PopMatters

Um exemplo perfeito da diferença entre um filme que recicla os elementos do gênero terror de maneira criativa e outro que apenas se limita a copiá-los.

Full Review Source: Cinema em Cena | comment Comment
03/15/08
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

The cornea-deprived caper The Eye definitely sports a blurry vision in the meager horror B-movie sweepstakes...never sees clearly in its search for doomsday enlightenment.

Full Review Source: TheWorldJournal.com | comment Comment
02/19/08
Frank Ochieng
Frank Ochieng
TheWorldJournal.com

Alba's performance is rather limp...

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
02/18/08
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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