Julia's Eyes

Darkness, the absence of light, is one of our oldest and most powerful sources of fear. It represents the unknown, as well as complete helplessness. Little wonder, then, that horror movies have been using darkness to frighten and disconcert us for generations.  

Julia’s Eye’s (Los Ojos De Julia in Spanish) takes this familiar theme and puts a unique twist on it. The darkness portrayed here is not simply a lack of light getting to the eye; it’s the eye itself, wasting away little by little until there’s nothing left to be seen.  

Julia Levin (Belen Rueda), an astronomer, collapses one day because she senses something has happened to her blind twin sister. With husband Isaac (Lluis Homar) by her side, she races to her sister’s house, only to find that she has hung herself. But something isn’t quite right. There are reports that her sister was seeing a man prior to her death, yet no-one can remember a skerrick of detail about him. Ignoring the advice of her husband, Julia sets out to identify and confront this nameless man. But her eyesight is slowly collapsing inward, as she succumbs to the same degenerative disease as her twin. The tables turn and the villain becomes more brazen, as it becomes clear that Julia is only one panic attack away from total blindness, and total helplessness. 

It’s a great concept for a film, and Julia’s Eyes lives up to the promise that it shows early on. This film works on so many levels; there are different layers to the experience, and they all complement the whole. There’s quite a bit of sentimentality in this piece, especially with Julia and Isaac’s relationship, that make all of the emotional punches land that much harder.

Julia is a great character, who really welcomes us into her psyche. She’s young, independent and successful, and could be an analogue for any one of us- yet she’s stricken with this terrible debilitating disease. The story is told exclusively through her eyes, even after she’s gone completely blind. This is achieved by never showing us the face of a character who Julia, herself can’t see. 

While the story would have allowed for a fairly conventional horror movie, director Guillem Morales has opted for a creepy psychological thriller. Julia’s eyes cultivates a growing sense of uneasiness through the plot twists, the increasing desperation of the protagonist and the adept use of light and dark. It’s not a scare-a-minute fright-fest, but a slow-burning hackle-raiser. 

I don’t want to say too much about the film’s creepier moments, because doing so would spoil too much of the plot- but suffice to say, there are some genuinely clever moments of suspense. 

Special Features:

As well as a theatrical trailer, the disc comes packed with interviews of Producer Guillermo Del Toro, Director Guillem Morales, and stars Belen Rueda and Lluis Homar. These are short and sharp, but give you a few useful insights into what the filmmakers were trying to achieve. There is also a ‘B-roll,’ which is comprised of extra footage from the set during filming. 

Closing comments: 

At different times charming, thought-provoking and scary, Julia’s Eyes is rich in creative detail. Great evidence that you don’t need a big budget to pull off a great thriller, just passion and talent.