Review of Eyes Without a Face (1960) by Sean Michael S — 11 May 2014

I'm perplexed at how such a widely renowned film could bore me to tears, let alone a film that is called a poetic masterpiece by Criterion. I find myself grasping at the excuse that I first watched the film over 50 years from it's release.

Am I desensitized to it's dread and "gore" that at the time was monumental? I say not so. I've been gripped by films made a decade before this was conceived, so why was I not moved by Franju's vision? I admit there were moments of human sorrow that tugged at my heartstrings, but mere seconds in a sea of drudging scenes? After viewing; minutes passes, hours passed, and time continued to move on while this film left a strange aftertaste in my mind.

This is where the most credit I can place shall lay. I found this film un-engaging to watch, and that is exactly the same position our faceless protagonist feels about living her life. In that, "Eyes Without a Face" succeeds in one of the most important aspects of storytelling: putting the audience in a character's shoes.