Arrow Video 4K UHD Blu-ray Synopsis: Following their explosive debut Bangkok Dangerous, directorial duo the Pang Brothers would catch the attention of acclaimed producer Peter Ho-Sun Chan, and the three would collaborate on one of the most memorable horror films to come out of Hong Kong, the chilling and poignant The Eye. When blind musician Wong Jar Mun (Angelica Lee) has her eyesight restored following a cornea transplant, she's initially astounded to discover the beauty of the world around her. Her nascent wonder soon turns to fear as her newfound sight becomes plagued with harrowing and uncanny visions. She confides in her psychiatrist Dr Wah (Lawrence Chou), who believes her body is just adapting to her new corneas. But his scepticism quickly shatters when they realize Wong Kar Mun's visions are not hallucinations, but grim portents of death. Perfectly balancing otherworldly scares with psychological terror, The Eye is a compelling tale of a woman realizing the world around her is more terrifying that she ever knew, memorably carried by Angelica Lee's award-winning performance. (98 Mins)

 

Tartan Asia UK DVD Synopsis: Welcome to a world where nothing is as it seems. Here, the blind see through the haunted eyes of the dead, strange forces play cruel tricks on the mind, and the spirits of those departed haunt the living. Described by Jonathan Ross as 'genuinely spooky', this dark and chilling tale from the now legendary Pang Brothers is already considered a horror classic. Packed with a host of spine-tingling set pieces, the film features a spectacular finale that rivals any blockbuster. Containing stunning new DTS-ES 6.1 Discrete and Dolby 5.1 EX Surround mixes, this digitally re-mastered edition has been encoded at the highest possible bit rate to deliver the very best playback quality possible. (95 Mins)

 

Views: I remember catching The Eye for the first time almost 25 years ago when Tartan released it on DVD as part of their Asia Extreme series. It was a time when Asian horror movies were coming to Western audiences fast and thick, with films like The Ring/Ringu (1998), Pulse (2001), Ju-On: The Grudge (2002), Dark Water (2002) and others, causing a stir with their unique approach to scares that quickly became over saturated. But The Eye offered something a little different. The film tells the story of blind violinist Mun, who receives a cornea transplant after living blind from a very young age. But she soon finds that her new gift has also given her the ability to see more than she hoped for – catching shadows, images and fully-fledged visions of those who have passed; sometimes proving to be a little too close for comfort. Convinced by her young enamoured doctor, and busy sister, to visit Thailand in an effort to find out more about her donor, Mun opens up a box of unnerving memories that soon lands them right in the middle of a huge disaster – with this particular scene being based on a real horrific tragedy. This happened in Bangkok back in 1990 that saw a gas truck explode in heavy traffic, causing 51 shops and houses to burn for over 24 hours, killing almost 100 people and destroying almost 70 vehicles...

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This was my first introduction to the highly acclaimed Pang Brothers. While their debut indie film, Bangkok Dangerous (1999), had been successful on the festival circuit, it never really appealed to me – but, after seeing The Eye (and thoroughly enjoying it), I was open to more from the twin directors. Born and raised in Hong Kong, the pair headed out to Thailand in their later years where they would start work in the film industry. Since The Eye, the pair have went onto direct hits like The Eye 2 (2004), Ab-Normal Beauty (2004), Leave Me Alone (2004), The Eye 10 (2005), Re-cycle (2006), The Detective (2007), The Storm Warriors (2009), The Detective 2 (2011), Fairy Tale Killer (2012) and so much more. And while I haven't loved everything on offer, it's only fair to say that they have been consistent with the quality of entertainment they do deliver. For me though, The Eye still stands as one of their best. Co-produced by Peter Chan Ho – director of Hong Kong greats like Tom, Dick & Hairy (1993), He's a Woman, She's a Man (1994), Comrades, Almost a Love Story (1996), Three (2002), The Warlords (2007), and Wuxia/Dragon (2011) among others – and Lawrence Cheng, the film was actually a co-production made between Hong Kong, Thailand and Singapore that saw cast and crew members from each nation brought to help bring things to life. In the past, the Pang Brothers have stated that they were initially inspired to write The Eye after reading a story in a Hong Kong newspaper, that reported on the suicide of a 16 year old girl who had just received a corneal transplant. The twins wondered what she may have seen after regaining her eyesight, that would have pushed her into taking her own life.

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Leading the way is Malaysian actress Angelica Lee who had only been acting for a few years prior to this in films like Sunshine Cops (1999), Betelnut Beauty (2001), Robinson's Crusoe (2002) and Princess D (2002), and ever since delivering her award-winning role here as Mun in The Eye, continued to star in a host of great titles including Golden Chicken 2 (2003), Koma (2004), 20:30:40 (2004), Divergence (2005), Re-Cycle (2006), The Drummer (2007), Missing (2008) and more. Aside from her throw away role in Lo Kim Wah's fun popcorn-flick Sunshine Cops (1999), The Eye was the first film that I really noticed how great she was, and have enjoyed seeing her performances in most of the aforementioned titles. Interestingly, not long after this, Angelica would go onto marry Oxide Pang, and is currently starring more in television roles of late including popular Netflix show, The Resurrected (2025). She is joined by popular Hong Kong actor Lawrence Chou, started his career in a similar fashion, rejoining Lee in the Pang Brothers film Re-Cycle (2006), but also working with the Pang's again on Leave Me Alone (2004) and Child's Eye (2010) in the years that followed. Fans may also recognise him in films such as Tiramisu (2002), The Death Curse (2003), Leave Me Alone (2004), Dragon Squad (2005), Dream Home (2010), and Aberdeen (2014), as well as Donnie Yen's Chasing the Dragon (2017) and Enter the Fat Dragon (2020) among many others. Here, as the young Doctor who helps and falls for Mun, Chou does a grand job and was a good choice to star alongside Angelica. Both are joined by a host of newer faces including actress Candy Lo who stars as Mun's sister...

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Accompanying the newly restored film is a host of special features that start with a wonderful 22 minute interview with producer Peter Ho. Coming across as a genuinely nice guy, Ho delivers his insightful and revealing thoughts on The Eye, while praising the efforts of the Pang Brothers and success of the film on release. Following that, Heather Wixson presents an interesting 15 minute video essay, sharing her thoughts on the modern horror classic. A fun archival piece about the Pang Brothers is next, presented in 4:3 and featuring many of the cast and crew members sharing theirs thoughts and experiences throughout the 7 minute featurette, including some shots of the real Thai explosion that the ending was based on. Likewise, an 8 minute archival 'making-of follows in the same format – almost playing like a continuation of the previous piece, although makes for an interesting watch. To finish things off, there are 4 trailers on offer with each including the original Tartan DVD one, which all range in different running times. Also known as Seeing Ghosts, the film spawned two sequels over the years that followed as well as a Hollywood remake that saw Jessica Alba cast as the leading lady. While it and other foreign remakes proved successful in their own countries, I still feel that the original film is the best of them all – and here, via this new Arrow Video 4K release – has never looked or sounded better!

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Overall: While it's scares may feel outdated today, The Eye still holds it's charm as a modern classic of horror cinema and proves to be just as gripping almost 25 later!

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Arrow Video 4K UHD Extras: 4K Restoration, New Interview with Producer Peter Chan Ho-Sun, Video Essay by Heather Wixson, Archival Making-Of Featurette, Archival Piece on the Pang Brothers, Trailers & Image Gallery

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Tartan Asia DVD Extras: Trailers & TV Spots