Review of "The Eye" (2002) DVD

Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson for Horror.com

While Japanese horror is more in the spotlight these days, what with the success of The Ring (which was adapted from "Ringu" -- first a popular series of Japanese books, then a movie), Chinese horror is also great fun. Some of the best Far East horror gems include The Bride with White Hair (1993), Mr. Vampire (1985), and Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires (1974). But now there's a newer movie which has caught the er, eyes, of a lot of the critics and horror fans Stateside. It's called The Eye, and after a big screen stint in limited release, it's new on DVD.

The story follows a young woman (Lee Sin-Je), who, blind since the age of two, is given an amazing transplant operation which restores her sight. She never once utters the phrase "I see dead people," but that is the gist. A horror movie that truly fills the screen with anxiety and dread for all the right reasons, The Eye is a rare treat and keeper for most genre libraries. Directed in a somewhat slow (by American standards) manner by The Pang Brothers, the ghosts are in keeping with The Devil's Backbone or The Sixth Sense -- very little flashy, Matrix "ghost twins" style, CGI here. The departed souls are almost normal, yet insidiously creepy (one that licks at fresh meat hanging in a butcher's shop with her big, blue tongue might make you think twice about tonight's dinner).

The Eye features an amazing, spooky soundtrack and a smart script that really makes you think. Is there a DNA-imbedded memory in donor body parts? Is the last memory of a departed soul played over and over again, like a small town matinee? What would you think, if you'd suddenly regained your sight and saw scary images -- does everybody see them? How would you rid yourself of these awful sights? To what lengths would you go?
 
The additional release material on the 2003 Lion's Gate version is fairly interesting, but only if you are a huge fan of the movie. It has some very static "talking head" interviews with the cast and crew (subtitled), as well as TV spots and theatrical trailers.