Blindness

Based on the novel by José Saramago, Blindness follows several unnamed characters, portrayed by actors like Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, and Gael García Bernal, as they find themselves forced to contend with an outbreak of inexplicable blindness. It’s a promising premise that’s squandered from beginning to end by screenwriter Don McKellar and director Fernando Meirelles, as the film gets off to an almost disastrous start thanks to the perplexing decision to set the proceedings within a fictional country. This assures that one is entirely unable to place oneself in the shoes of the various figures, with the incredibly forced and downright stilted atmosphere setting a tone of inauthenticity that ultimately pervades every aspect of the film. The worst is yet to come, however, as Blindness‘ entire midsection is set entirely within the confines of a dark, thoroughly unpleasant former sanitarium, where those afflicted with the unexplainable disease are sent to live and fend for themselves. It’s not surprising to note that the movie quickly becomes almost unbearably stagy, as McKellar’s exceedingly artificial dialogue, coupled with the increasingly improbable behavior of the characters, serves only to exacerbate the stagnant nature of the nonexistent storyline. And while the film does improve slightly in its final half hour, Blindness is, ultimately, an utterly misguided disaster that’s a sure candidate for the worst of the year.

* out of ****