Sightless (2020) User Reviews

Blinded by the light...

[iamtherobotman · 6/10 · 21 January 2021]

Just finished watching this and, it wasn't bad at all. By no means great, but certainly passable. One can only imagine how disorienting it must be for someone to be 'newly' blind and as such this film does make you think to an extent. I liked how we saw things as she imagined them, only for the perception to change to reality. It emphasises just how much we do rely on our sight to identify and recognise and the struggles newly blinded people would have identifying this new world.

The one part of the film where it completely lost me was the ending. Once she'd managed to rejoin the real world, we skip forward 6 months and she's about to perform a concert... Well, what happened in those 6 months?? Presumably she contacted Police? Clayton was arrested, tried and convicted?? She must surely have gone to the Hospital to have her eyes properly checked over? It's an odd way to end the film, there's no real closure on what had happened to her. Clayton's obsession makes little sense. How old was he when his father locked him in the basement? He's at least the same age as Ellen and she stopped playing because of her Husband. How long ago? Is there a market for solo Classical Violin even?? I mean she's obviously had a recording contract of some kind too, so she'll have an agent, Manager...the works. Where were these people while all this was going on? Were Police searching for her??

There's so many unanswered and indeed unasked questions in this film. It's worth a watch, the lead actress does a fine job, as do the rest of the cast, but there's just too many loose ends which are never addressed.

visualizing blindness

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 23 January 2021]

Ellen Ashland (Madelaine Petsch) is blinded by an attacker and her expensive violin gets stolen. Her estranged brother sets up a convenient downtown apartment for her and hires Clayton (Alexander Koch) to help her adjust to her new blindness. She starts hearing disturbances from the apartment next door.

I really love the idea of visualizing her blindness. The bird is great. My only suggestion is to go full-bore with this premise. The pictures and art should be blank unless she is otherwise told. Any fabric should not have prints. I like the blues. It takes some careful attention but this visualizing blindness really works. Now, the reveal isn't much of a surprise. By that time, one could bake a cake with all the bread crumps. It's still interesting. On the other hand, a couple of ideas don't add up. It doesn't make sense with the brother. One assumes that Ellen would recognize her own brother's voice. An easy fix would be a letter instead of a phone call. The other is Lana. There is no reason to inject her into the drama other than a writer's prerogative. I don't see her helping Ellen play the violin again and that's the only possible motive. It's one of those things that doesn't stand up to a little bit of scrutiny. Overall, this is interesting but it does have a few problems.

Above average movie

[joaoedviges · 7/10 · 30 September 2020]

It was ok... It gets points for keeping me hooked to the entire time... in some ways it can be a bit predictable - albeit in some ways also original .. Even so, its worth watching, some good performances. This is not a horror movie, if I should say... its a thriller.

Not bad

[bgmagic22 · 5/10 · 30 September 2020]

This movie wasn't great but not quite deserving of the 4 it has...There were a few plot holes that were not addressed by the end, like the whereabouts of certain people yet some aspects of the film are original. It's somewhat predictable but I still found myself surprised at certain parts. I give it a 5.5.

Brilliant way of portraying "Perception vs Reality"

[jseynopsis · 7/10 · 4 October 2020]

I think I'd give a 10/10 to the director for his brilliant way of portraying "Perception vs Reality". During the movie, I often wondered why certain characters suddenly disappeared, but after finishing the movie, I know why now.

However, in general I'd only give it a 7/10 as I felt that the story wasn't strong enough, like it was only half told. If they could give us a little more insight to Clayton and his sister's history, it's probably more interesting. It's still a good movie though, managed to keep my curiosity till the end.

Where is the budgie?

[JaneBingley · 3/10 · 9 November 2020]

The movie is meh. A hot blind woman lives by herself with a hunky care taker popping in now and again. In the very beginning of the movie, the care taker gives her a blue budgie (yes, its blue, the trailer is lying) to keep her company. She is thankful and pleased by such a nice gesture. And places the cage in the middle of the living room, where almost all of the movie takes place. Despite this, the bird is not seen, mentioned, hinted on (no bird seed, water bowl, cage etc) or heard from again. Nothing.

Kinda confused lol

[savanaraef · 6/10 · 23 January 2021]

I am a big fan of thrillers, so I decided to watch this movie. I wouldn't say it's a bad movie, but it could have been better. Madeleine's performance was okay. She was to play a blind woman, so I didn't expect too much from her. The movie was a little too slow paced for me though. After reaching the midpoint of the film, I could tell what the end plot of the story would be. Very predictable. There are also many unanswered questions and details that did not add to the story at all. I was quite interested in finding out what the plot was, so for that, I'll give it a 6.

Strong performances, but defies any logic

[liderc · 3/10 · 21 January 2021]

It starts well, with a gripping premise, a strong sense of threat and really fine performances of the whole ensemble cast. As soon as you notice that the stories the caretaker tells his client about his childhood sound like taken from some weird soap opera, you get to the problem which ruined the second half of the movie. It all doesn't make much sense, the big conspiracy boils down to a pretty childish and even crazy love bombing / stalking situation, and the whole thing just cannot reasonably be explained. It is a good allegory of how a relationship with a narcissist, either by relation or through marriage, would function and feel like. But just like a narcissistic dream world, it doesn't stand the light of day or reason. It was probably made for teenagers or young adults, as this audience will more easily buy into the scriptwriters superficial and messed up use of classic thriller ingredients.

Meh.

[Just-A-Girl-14 · 6/10 · 29 May 2021]

A slow burner with a twist at the end that makes the whole thing very unrealistic. I get what they were trying to say. It's like she said, perception is everything but if you really think about it, it just doesn't make sense. It's watchable but I can't recommend it.

A lot of it made no sense

[georgianadragomir-28339 · 5/10 · 21 January 2021]

I am a big fan of psychollogical thrillers..but It seemed like a lot of it made no sense,as in...I don't get how...if he attacked her, he also played the doctor,who actually treated her? What was the purpose of his sister? Where is her friend?what happened with the friend,is she really guilty of something? Bacause he made everything up,so a follow up would've been nice. The plot was predictable. I realised what was going on in the first 30 minutes...so the build up for the plot twist was not really worth it in the end. Where is her brother in this story...and btw where is the bird? Completely disappered somehow...Anyway,overall...for me was not logical and entertaining.

"The Sound of Tragedy"

[Kamurai25 · 8/10 · 21 January 2021]

Great watch, would watch again, and do recommend.

Sensory handicap movies are a special niche, and they're usually pretty interesting. That doesn't mean that they're good, but they usually do something different and special.

For deaf movies, sometimes they'll do a POH (Point Of Hearing) from the main character to immerse you in the character's role, but it is very hard to do that for blindness as normally you would be looking at a black / white screen, though it works for partial blindess.

This movie handles it in a way I've never seen before, and it is fantastic. While Madelaine Petsch, and I'm a fan, carries this movie well and shows she's more than her role on "Riverdale", it is really the visual depiction of an amazing story that should make you watch this.

Far surpassed my expectations.

[misanthr0pist · 7/10 · 13 March 2021]

Maybe it's because I've seen a lot of terrible movies recently, but I thought this one was really good!

A super effective slow burn, and a really unique plot that unfolds perfectly. Madeline Petsch did a phenomenal job playing Ellen, with a really believable performance as a blind woman. The use of close up shots throughout the film was really well done and there were moments when the score paired incredibly with the cinematography.

The last ten or so minutes are a little underwhelming, but it doesn't take away from the movie as a whole. A super suspenseful and effective Psychological Thriller, and an excellent directorial debut from Cooper Karl.

You kidding me?

[rosefappani · 5/10 · 23 January 2021]

I understand why some users found this entertaining and all that, few plot holes can be overlooked but without giving to much away how can it be overlooked , not pun intended, such a prowess of a newly blind? Slow to start and completely over the top premises for the the background storyline, it's not THAT entertaining to make me overlook such big faults

My good god

[pete-k-696-518741 · 1/10 · 23 January 2021]

The worst movie Ive ever seen. Theres no depth of character, no plotline, what the **** is the writer thinking.

Great sense of doom. Above-average, classy thriller

[JuneJHK · 7/10 · 16 October 2020]

Great twists, plenty of suspense, and what a psychopath. The first big twist is a huge one, and for once, a genuine surprise. It's all more than decent, and gets points for originality, and the feeling it's all soaked in dread. Solid performances from the leads.

Terrible

[OGmacadamia39 · 1/10 · 27 October 2020]

This movie was horrible from start to finish. Not only was it slow (which is fine with the right film), but the storyline was also empty of any realism. Do not waste your time.

Good movie, give it a shot

[chris-bossie · 6/10 · 2 October 2020]

Good performances and a fun twist. Above average for sure.

What a waste of a good thriller idea

[mynewera-29806 · 2/10 · 21 January 2021]

Disclaimer: I'm a horror and thriller addict with pretty low standard which allows me to watch repeatedly pretty average movies.

My rating of this "masterpiece": Screenplay: really very bad Directing: not much better Leading roles: is it really the best they found....? Supporting acting: lovely The idea: not completely original but I loved it Summary: would never watch it again

I admire how anyone with a good idea thinks that they can make it big without knowing the basics. There is a reason why one should learn the technicalities before bringing their idea to life. This movie - I rest my case.

Original psychological thriller which loses its way.

[jamesstewart1977 · 6/10 · 22 January 2021]

An interesting and original psychological thriller. However, the ending left me feeling a little disappointed as this could have been so much better. The plus side? Kept me engrossed throughout, acting was decent, great suspenseful storyline and I really loved the cinematography which gave us a sense of what the main character was hearing, sensing and feeling. The down side? Way too many plot holes as we got towards the second half of the film and the ending was just downright lazy. A shame as this was definitely on the right route for most of the film, but I think they just ran out of ideas.

Lazy rip-off of "The Eye".

[SamJamie · 2/10 · 22 January 2021]

Sightless is a 2020 American psychological thriller film written and directed by Cooper Karl, based on his 2017 short film of the same name. The film stars Madelaine Petsch and Alexander Koch.

After a vicious attack leaves a young woman blind, she must fight back to escape her new reality in which people are not who they seem to be.

First off, this movie is just plain dull & boring. The cinematography is flat and un-involving and the acting ranges from wooden to terrible, mostly thanks to Madeleine Petsch, who I've always thought is the worst actor on Riverdale. She's completely unconvincing as the lead here. Secondly, this movie is a blatant rip off of "The Eye", down to the main character used to be a musician. The story asks us to suspend our disbelief, it's just plain far-fetched nonsense - the scares are rubbish and things just happen and then the story moves on to something else, almost as if parts have been cut from a longer film. This is one of the worst movies I've seen so far this year, everything from the dialogue to the writing is just plain terrible. Don't waste your time on this one.

Much to see

[kosmasp · 8/10 · 3 April 2021]

I'm not sure how anyone will feel about the ending, about the revelations and resolutions this has in store for us (no pun intended). What I do know and what I can attest and what I hope you remember even if you are dissapointed at the end: the movie and how it worked up to that point! Because the visual treats, the storytelling by giving and taking away ... I bow to that! Really well thought of and really well done structurally speaking.

The tension is there from beginning to end and the guessing game remains. Even if you figure things out faster than others, the way the movie holds up and is able to really be suspensful throughout is a testament to the abilities of everyone involved. Not a masterpiece but still a very good thriller.

somewhat predictable, but still a good watch

[cool_andhot · 6/10 · 20 January 2021]

The good thing was , it didn't bore me and I was hooked from beginning to end. There are one or two twists, but if you have seen many psychological thrillers , you would guess it. Acting was really good and the atmosphere was different.

What a disagreement!

[savedgal-34959 · 2/10 · 27 January 2021]

This movie started out strong, but eventually turned into pure insanity! It made no sense and left you with no answers!

Boring, Pointless, Uneventful

[laurenjfree · 1/10 · 1 February 2021]

Awful. Just awful. I've seen Riverdale (its my guilty pleasure, I know its bad) so I was interested to see Madelaine Petsch in a different acting role. Needless to say, I was far from impressed, though its more the directors fault than hers. If there even was a director. This movie was just a sloppy and messy attempt a psychological thriller.

The movie never fully went for anything. For example, they tried to show what Ellen (Madelaine Petsch) felt and how she misinterpreted many situations after losing her sight. I wish they would have gone full Black Swan with this by bringing the audience into the protagonists mind. They didn't. Instead we were somewhere in the middle waiting for her to figure out what anyone with two working braincells would know. It was exhausting.

You can see the plot twist coming from a mile away. The knocking thing the antagonist(s) did was so shoved in the audiences face you cant help but figure out the plot before the halfway point.

By the end I didn't feel scared, confused, happy, sad or angry. For a movie with such a dramatic colour scheme I expected it have a little more emotional impact. I felt nothing. Just disappointed.

Even though I watched this movie only a couple days ago, I'm struggling to remember what happened. The sole reason im writing this is in hopes of stopping others from making the same mistake I did. Please for the love of God dont waste your time on this.

A forgettable thriller

[emiily13 · 6/10 · 25 January 2021]

I watched this movie with my brother last night.. It was just ok but nothing more. . From the first 10 minutes my brother told me that the man is definitely the attacker and I told him I don't think because it would be very predictable. Of course it was extremely predictable....And it has no difference with many thrillers of similar plot. The fact that the man was all the characters can be considered as a twist, that you cannot predict it easily. But even this was not supported by the writers. I didn't like the scene that Ellen understood.. I wanted more passion. However I love Madelaine and her acting was great.