The Eye (Gin gwai) poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

Lee Sinje, Lawrence Chou, Chutcha Rujinanon, Candy Lo, Pierre Png ... see more see more... , Yin Ping Ko , Edmund Chen , Wilson Yip , Yut Lai So , Benjamin Yuen , Angelica Lee

A corneal transplant sets the stage for terror in this supernatural thriller from directors Danny and Oxide Pang. Blind from the age of two, 20-year-old Mann (Angelica Lee) now has a chance to reclaim... read more read more... her sense of sight thanks to recent breakthroughs in technology. At first elated to have her vision restored, Mann's joy soon turns to paralyzing fear when she begins to see mysterious dark figures which foreshadow sudden, shocking deaths. Subsequently distraught over seeing Ling (Chutcha Rujinanon), the previous owner of the corneas, when she peers into the mirror, Mann's disturbing images slowly begin to chip away at her sanity until she has no choice but to track Ling's past and solve the horrifying mystery that plagues her. Traveling to Ling's former home in a small Northern Thailand village, Mann learns that Ling was driven to suicide after suffering similar visions preceding a tragic fire. When hundreds of the mysterious black figures descend upon Mann just as she is about to leave Thailand, she realizes that a horrific tragedy is set to unfold unless she can summon the courage to take action and use her supernatural gift of sight to alter the future. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Flixster Users

70% liked it

25,812 ratings

Critics

64% liked it

102 critics

R, 1 hr. 38 min.

Directed by: Danny Pang, Oxide Pang Chun

Release Date: May 9, 2002

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: October 21, 2003

Stats: 1,344 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

The Eye The Eye The Eye The Eye The Eye (Gin gwai) The Eye (Gin gwai) The Eye The Eye The Eye (Gin gwai) The Eye (Gin gwai) The Eye (Gin gwai) The Eye (Gin gwai)
Upload a Photo | View All The Eye (Gin gwai) Photos

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (1,344)

  • flixsterman
    March 25, 2012
    flixsterman
    Supernatural thriller featuring the beautiful and talented Angelica Lee. The concepts aren't exactly original but the approach is fresh and effectively frightening.
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    June 30, 2011
    TheDudeLebowski65
    The Eye is terrific horror film. I've really dipped into the whole Asian horror films, but I have managed to see a few films.As a horror fan, I was stunned and how good this was. I love the Asian flair in creating atmospheric, and tense horror. Thats really the key in creating a... read more good horror yarn, the atmosphere. If you don't have that in your film, well you're pretty much screwed. The Eye directed by The Pang Brothers is a well executed horror film that has plenty of jolts to creep out the viewer. You have to give Asians props for creating tense, atmospheric horror. They are rewriting the horror rule book, and creating several memorable horror films along the way. However the American market is bent on remaking all of them, to very mediocre results. The Eye recounts the story a girl who lost her eyesight atr a young age, and she gets a new pair of eyes from a doner. After the operation, she starts seeing ghostly figures with her new eyes. A horrifying tale, The Eye will keep you on the edge of your seat and creep you out till the very end. The Pang Brothers have made a terrific film and it delivers genuine scares. If you love this, stay away from the remake that film is terrible like with every other Asian horror remake. The original The Eye will never be surpassed and is one of the most original, and thrilling Asian horror films in many years.
  • 76Majikat
    September 10, 2010
    76Majikat
    One of the best Asian ghost stories I've seen to date, not one that you have to keep guessing at, just one to sit back and allow the storyline to unfold.

    The film has the perfect amount of eerieness without making it a typical "scary movie"

    Totally enjoyable.
  • ScoopOnline
    December 14, 2009
    ScoopOnline
    Some things are better left unseen
  • SirPant
    September 14, 2009
    SirPant
    The creepiest horror film in years and, for me, the best Asian horror film so far. The 'Get out of my chair' scene is one of the most terrifying I've ever seen! Do not watch alone!!
  • LitelBluHli
    March 11, 2009
    LitelBluHli
    This version is scarier and much more interesting to watch.
  • garyX
    September 18, 2008
    garyX
    A young woman blinded as a little girl has an operation to restore her sight only to be haunted by ghostly apparitions and images of a black clad stranger. The Sixth Sense gets the J- horror treatment in this inventive Korean chiller. The premise is an interesting one and there ... read moreare some very creative and effective visuals from the Pang brothers, although they are on occasion guilty of over egging it a little. The biggest problem with it is its schizophrenic nature; the first half has some genuinely chilling moments, particularly when she first regains her sight but half way through it changes tack and decides to be a supernatural thriller, and this part does not work half as well. Still, some of the imagery is brilliantly done and there are a couple of excellent scenes but it does not quite live up to its initial promise and suffers in comparison to its obvious cinematic inspiration by M. Night Shyamalan. Worth a look if you're into this kind of thing though.
  • SilentWarProductions2009
    December 4, 2007
    SilentWarProductions2009
    Directed by: The Pang Brothers.
    Starring: Angelica Lee, Lawrence Chou, Chutcha Rujinanon.

    In a world where hollywood films are pretty much the standard, that is all that the average person will ever see, when it comes to the 'horror' films they create... read more, people have gotten used to the way they make them and think that by just having cheap jump scares and loud noises, that it is successful, when actually it is talentless and cheap....we can only rely on other countries to provide us something right and with The Eye, we have it.

    And I still cannot believe people have not found this film yet, it has been a favourite of mine for many years now and certainly still remains in my top 10 best horror films of all time. The story follows a young blind violinist who has been blind since she was 2 years old, she has grown up with only the sense of touch to guide her through life. One day she is optioned to receive a very experimental operation: A cornea transplant, so that she will be able to see again....but she starts to see more than she thought. The story alone is compelling, the main operation is actually that based on a true story and The Pang Brothers have taken that and made it into one hell of a compelling film. What helps to make this film work under the surface is that sense of mystery, we alone cannot imagine what it would be like for someone blinded there whole life to be given sight so suddenly and to include images that we might see as strange but to a blind person they cannot understand or fully comprehend anything they see. If a film with such an interesting story was given to some cheap hollywood 'for hire' director, it would most certainly be ruined....but with The Pang Brothers behind the camera, they understand the material so well (being that they wrote it) and know how to play off its strengths. They never rely on sudden noises or cheap scares, they use there cameras with such skill and inject pure tension that is slow and spine chilling....and with stylish imagery (and experimental editing by them as well) that blends into the story so well and adds another layer of atmosphere to the film, it is truly scary in many key scenes (the elevator scene is infamous). The score is actually quite quirky a lot of the time, sounding very playful in that strange Japanese way, but when it is required, its slow building and chilling. And in one hell of a rare occasion (over 20 years in fact), we have an amazingly strong lead in a horror film. Angelica Lee is very convincing, appearing truly scared by what her character sees and it helps us to feel even more scared....this is something that every 'modern horror' leading lady fails in.

    Not only does it succeed in creating some truly and genuinely scary scenes, it also works well at being a very compelling thriller and mystery. When I think of the Pang Brothers, I think 'horror'....and now that America is doing what it does best by being unoriginal and remaking this film, you must see this.
  • DragonEyeMorrison
    September 27, 2007
    DragonEyeMorrison
    Generic, but it has some moments.
  • newvogueravyn
    May 27, 2007
    newvogueravyn
    This is one of the creepiest Asian horrors, and also one that makes me cry like the girl I am at the finale. Angelica Lee is brilliant. Just hope that the remake flood doesn't ruin it, although I tend to like a lot of the remakes anyway...

View All The Eye (Gin gwai) Reviews

Critic Reviews

Geoff Pevere
November 21, 2003
Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star

With its spooky first-person rendering of Mun's experience -- blurred, tentative, disoriented -- The Eye creates a world of constant and imminent upheaval. Full Review

Liam Lacey
November 21, 2003
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

Though perhaps not the greatest thing since sliced eyeballs, The Eye is definitely worth a look, or even a double-take. Full Review

Joe Baltake
October 10, 2003
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee

A modest pleasure for aficionados of chillers. Full Review

Lisa Kennedy
July 25, 2003
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post

Seeing dead people? A jarring journey from darkness into light? Granted, it's been done. But there are sweet, difficult pleasures here just the same. Full Review

Robert Denerstein
July 25, 2003
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News

It's a definite display of talent, but without enough thematic richness to get deeply under our skins.

John Monaghan
July 19, 2003
John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press

An atmospheric and cleverly executed nail-biter. Full Review

Eric Harrison
July 11, 2003
Eric Harrison, Houston Chronicle

To put all the pieces in place, the Pangs have to cut a few corners in logic, but the story is generally effective if not exactly original. Full Review

Colin Covert
July 8, 2003
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

As chilling as an ice cube drawn across the back of your neck. Full Review

Gary Dowell
June 28, 2003
Gary Dowell, Dallas Morning News

It is occasionally unnerving, but slack pacing keeps the tension from mounting too high. Full Review

Richard Roeper
June 23, 2003
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper

... very effectively done, very scary! Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • The Eye
    The Eye (88%)
  • The Ring
    The Ring (66%)
  • The Grudge
    The Grudge (62%)
  • Wishing Stairs
    Wishing Stairs (40%)

More Movies like The Eye (Gin gwai)

Facts

No facts approved yet. Be the first

The Eye (Gin gwai... : Watch Free on TV

The Eye (Gin gwai) Trivia

  • in which movie did the girl have an eye transplant then she could suddenly see ghosts?  Answer »
  • Which of the following Asian horror films is NOT Japanese?  Answer »
More The Eye (Gin gwai) Trivia

Movie Quizzes

Create a Quiz |

All Quizzes

Video Clips

Upload a Video |

All The Eye (Gin gwai) Videos

Meet Other Fans

Add The Eye (Gin gwai) to favorites

Recent News

Submit a Story |

View The Eye (Gin gwai) News

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

No skins yet. Interested in creating one?