Media Review

Movies: Blindness

When I read Jose Saramago's novel Blindness ten years ago, I wondered how they could make a film about everyone going blind. I knew that Don McKellar was working on the screenplay, and being a fan of all his films, was excited to see how it would look. We watched the film several days ago, and I'm still thinking about the images and techniques the filmmakers used.

The film, directed by Fernando Meirelles, is very visual, as it has to be to make us feel the loss of the characters. The story grows dark as time passes, and the film stock and colours reflect both the physical and psychological trials that the characters all go through.

The film succeeds both in terms of story and style. It has a science-fiction feel to it and has been described as "an apocalyptic humanistic parable." If you liked McKellar's film Last Night, which he also wrote and starred in as well as made his directorial debut with, you will like Blindness. While Blindness uses even more stylized imagery and a wider range of visual techniques than Last Night did, the apocalyptic feel is similar and exploring human relations and emotions in such an extreme and intense situation are themes.

Jose Saramago is a Portuguese writer who has won the Nobel prize for literature. If you have the time and interest, I recommend reading the book (and any of his others) as well as seeing the movie.

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