Occhi nelle tenebre

There have been a load of psychological thrillers made in this decade, often heaped with sex and gratuitous violence. BLINK uses these familiar conventions, but becomes a powerhouse suspense flick with its convincing characters, ominous camera shots, and beautifully written script. Madeline Stowe stars as a blind violinist for a clubhouse band who is given her sight back with a fortunate (or unfortunate) corneal transplant. She has difficulty adjusting to the seeing world, having recurring images flashed back at her at inopportune times. Even with this handicap, she believes she has been an eyewitness to an escaping murderer, but her biggest feat is to convince the police department of her credibility. Aidan Quinn (an under-rated talent) plays the Chicago cop who believes her claim and falls in love with her in the process. What really stands in BLINK is the honesty in the leads' emotions, afraid to care again after the conventional one-night-stand. The atmosphere is most suspenseful, using Stowe's actual eyesight as a mystery in itself. Amidst all the crap that has been radiated from these types of films, BLINK delivers something credible for a change. Rating: Three stars.

The main reason I saw this film was not because I thought the plot sounded interesting, or even because of the fact that it stars the beautiful Madeleine Stowe; the reason I saw it is purely down to the fact that I remembered seeing posters for it in the video store when I was a kid. With such a nonchalant viewing reason behind me, it probably wont come as a surprise that I wasn't expecting a lot from this film; and it's a good job as Blink is a highly disappointing thriller with numerous problems and very little to recommend it for. The plot is not particularly original, and focuses on the idea of a blind woman in peril. There is a slight twist on this theme; as the woman in this film is not quite blind; in fact, she is the benefactor of a breakthrough 'eye transplant', which re-enables her sight after over twenty years of being blind. A side effect of this treatment is the fact that she sees some things 'by memory', and this is a problem when she apparently witnesses a murder as she's not sure if it's real or just flashback...

The film would be described a 'psychological thriller', and the reason why these films are often hit and miss is the main problem with this one. A film like this really needs a central character that is easy to get into; and while I believe that Madeleine Stowe is a great actress, she's not given the room to do much with this role. The plotting is not good at all, and is often all over the place; and too much of the film focuses on the tentative (and boring) relationship between the central character and a policeman on the case. This relationship feels extremely phoney, and since it makes up a large proportion of the running time of the film; it becomes a pretty big problem. There are a few decent scenes; Stowe is very good despite the poor material, though I would have preferred a lot more suspense, given that this is really supposed to be a thriller. The ending is pulled off fairly nicely, though its impact is lessened by the tepid film that preceded it. For a far better take on a similar theme, see the fantastic 'Wait Until Dark', and skip this.

A good, absorbing thriller with an unusual idea at its core, "Blink" also enjoys the benefits of good acting and direction, and some truly heartstopping scenes. What struck me also was its success in making the audience share the "Emma Brody's" confusion when faced with the the sights of the city around her for the first time in years. The very last scene is, perhaps, a bit pat, but we've had our fun by then and can indulge the filmmakers here. Recommended.

I didn't find much "thrill" in this thriller but that doesn't mean it isn't worth watching. I loved the story about the blind woman who gets a transplant and can see for the first time since she was a little girl. I like her strong will and defiance and her ironically delicate job as a violinist. I like the way she deals with her troubled past and can just announce to strangers what has happened to her. I like her stormy relationship with a jaded bachelor cop almost past his prime. All of this was told and played brilliantly. I wish that they'd just left the thriller aspect out and concentrated on these two believable, real and interesting characters. That was the movie to make. Stowe is particularly good in these kinds of roles and I count myself as a fan after seeing this and Twelve Monkeys.

Madeline Stowe of "The Last of the Mohicans" fame stars in BLINK as a feisty musician who undergoes a new type of eye surgery to restore her vision, lost in childhood at the hands of an abusive mom. As her vision slowly returns, she runs afoul of a killer who is convinced she has gotten a good look at him, and is now after her. She tells the cops, who not surprisingly laugh at her. The irony is, she only sees the killer in a sort of surreal way, with the camera serving as Stowe's vision and showing us what amounts to little more than phantasms. She also suffers from mental time gaps with her returning vision. Stowe ends up falling for burly cop Aidan Quinn, who decides she's telling the truth and protects her. There's a nice trick at the very end involving the killer. Suspenseful and stylish for its time, with a thoughtful performance by Stowe.