BLINDNESS

BLINDNESS is the story of a sudden plague of blindness that devastates a city. A small group of the afflicted people bands together to attempt to overcome the horrific conditions of their imposed quarantine.

The doctor who treats the first victim of the strange blindness is thrust into the action once he becomes blind himself. His wife has no choice but to “go along for the ride.” Once they are placed in the first government quarantine, they meet the rest of the players in this dark story and the truly tragic events that begin to unfold.

Without any real explanation, the “patients” that have been struck with blindness are horded into a prison-like hospital without any communication or help from the outside. No doctors, officials or any other government intervention is present except for the weekly delivery of boxes of food. Those in the quarantine are left to their own ends, and chaos and anarchy quickly surface as the result of this abandonment.

The story itself has some real uniqueness and peaks interest at the beginning, but quickly slips into obscurity. The plague and the quarantine have no real explanation. It is not even clear where the story takes place. In the opening scenes, the cars, streets, buildings, and people seem as though they are in Europe or Canada (where part of the movie was filmed). Also, there are various accents with different characters but basic American English becomes the standard. The voice of a government spokesperson and soldiers are also clearly American. It is quite confusing as to where the movie takes place and even what the time period is. Finally, the conflict in the movie ends as suddenly as it began, with no concrete resolution.

The acting is mostly solid, but no Oscar nods coming from this one. The sets and locations bring the movie to life, but the weakness of and holes in the storyline deteriorate any positive production quality. The cast is a relatively good mix, except for an awkward cameo role by Danny Glover.

BLINDNESS has plenty of foul language, sexual depravity (including a violent rape scene), immorality, violence, murder, and adultery. Although the rape scene is not glorified, the woman is “blackmailed” into the situation, and it is graphic and disturbing. Murder is justified as a means to an end and for the purpose of revenge. The government (whose government we aren’t really clear on) is depicted as cold, callused, uncaring, and murderous. There is full, frontal nudity of both men and women as well as sexual promiscuity, including an act of adultery. Overall, the movie is dark, depressing, confusing, and has no redeeming value. Much caution is recommended.