The Eye 2008

Jessica Alba as Sydney Wells is a successful classical violinist from Los Angeles who has been blind since she was five years old, the result of an accident with firecrackers. Fifteen years later, during a quiet rehearsal in honor of conductor and pianist Simon McCullough’s birthday, Sydney undergoes a cornea transplant, which gradually restores her sight but leaves it somewhat blurry at first. As the days pass, her vision sharpens, yet it also unleashes a stream of terrifying visions—fire, collapsing venues, and people who are already dead. She even sees a girl who seems to pass right through her. The unsettling images push Sydney to seek answers, even as she fights the fear of losing her grip on reality. Her struggle to understand the visions is supported by Alessandro Nivola as Paul Faulkner, a longtime violin colleague and her visual therapist who helps her navigate what she is experiencing.

Together they travel to Mexico, where the cornea donor Ana Cristina Martinez originated. From Ana’s mother, they learn that the disturbing images are connected to an industrial accident that Ana had foreseen. Ana herself died by hanging, unable to prevent the catastrophe, and Sydney chooses to forgive her spirit, allowing it to depart in peace. As they begin their journey home, they are stalled by traffic from a police chase on the other side of the border. Sydney sees the familiar little girl in a car beside them, and she realizes that her visions are not puzzles but warnings meant to save people about to die in a tragedy.

With Paul beside her, Sydney alerts the crowd on the highway, guiding them away from danger—first by convincing a busful of passengers to evacuate by hinting at a threat inside the vehicle, and then by pulling everyone to safety before a catastrophic chain reaction unfolds. The driver leading the chase breaches the border barriers and slams into a tank truck, triggering a gasoline leak and a massive explosion. Sydney is blinded anew by flying glass as the blast rocks the vehicles around them. After recovering in a hospital, she returns to Los Angeles to continue performing as a blind violinist, carrying a more hopeful outlook on her condition and the role her visions can play in protecting others.

The cast also features Parker Posey in a supporting role.