“The Eye”

Rating: 7/10

Starring:

Jessica Alba, Alessandro Nivola, Parker Posey

The Plot:

Alba plays Sydney Wells, a concert violinist who has been blind since childhood. She appreciates the beauty of the world with her remaining senses but still feels alienated by her handicap. At her sister’s (Posey) urging, she reluctantly undergoes a cornea transplant and unwittingly receives a paranormal pair of peepers. Wells struggles as she witnesses a world of troubled specters and, with the help of her doctor (Nivola), seeks resolution with her donor’s haunted past.

The Good:

Absent is the gratuity and “torture-porn” that has become a staple of the horror-genre recently. Nor does “The Eye” rely heavily on computer-effects to hawk its horror. Rather, the thrills are founded in fast-cut hallucination sequences and ghostly performances. The story unfolds steadily and reliably, though not predictably. Nivola’s Dr. Faulkner is edgy, somewhat unsympathetic and a refreshing departure from the predictable supporting player in a horror flick.

The Bad:

Alba’s nothing to write home about. Her character is suddenly introduced to sight after many years without it (“I probably wouldn’t even recognize myself in a mirror,” she said), and one would expect her to be more visibly shocked by the events she sees. Instead, she keeps a dull, resolute expression through most of the frights. Posey is miscast as Alba’s sister, wasting her time in a less-than-vital role. The story is a knock-off of a Hong Kong horror film “Gin gwai,” which wouldn’t be that bad if it weren’t just the most recent in a trend of Asian plot-robberies. The unoriginality issues hit closer to home when the audience watches Alba struggle to keep from uttering, “I see dead people.”

The Lowdown:

Regardless of who thought of it first, there’s still more plot here than the average contemporary horror film. The scares might have you shifting in your seat, but Alba probably won’t. Her character development is absent-minded, and her transition from being blind to having vision again isn’t explored thoroughly enough. If pretty blind chicks and terrifying madness rocks your boat, you’ll be better off with Emily Watson in “Red Dragon.”