Eye of the Storm was released in 2023. It is a Taiwanese thriller film directed by Lin Chun-Yang and starring Chen Bolin, Wu Ke-xi, and Chang Chen. The film is set in Taipei during the SARS outbreak of 2003 and follows the story of Dr. Zheng Xia, a thoracic surgeon who is trapped in a hospital lockdown with nearly a thousand other people when an unknown deadly virus spreads.
In 2003, before the worldwide Covid-19 crisis, Taipei experienced hours of turmoil in a hospital due to the SARS health crisis. This film is a dramatization of the events that occurred and, at least in its cinematic portrayal, successfully achieves all its objectives and creates a highly effective critical atmosphere without relying on flashy effects.
The film skillfully plays with pacing and captivates the audience with a very challenging theme, approaching it almost as if it were a horror thriller.
However, whether or not you are interested in the topic of contagion, hospitals, and health crises is another matter.
Synopsis
The hospital is in a state of absolute lockdown due to a serious virus outbreak, leaving those stuck inside the facility with a large number of difficult decisions to make.
About the Movie
A movie that delves very closely into the subject of death, not disguising it or treating it frivolously, just as it avoids excessive sensationalism or resembling a Hollywood blockbuster when approaching the health crisis.
“Eye of the Storm” is a thriller that, at its core, is a thriller, but it does not want to confine itself to the rules of the genre. It is a film that seeks to go beyond and delve into the psychology of the characters more than the action itself. It narrates the increasing despair of the health crisis and confinement more than becoming a montage of special effects. It unfolds slowly, taking its time for important dialogues, allowing the characters to naturally confront the crisis, and looking at the characters’ desolate landscape sometimes coldly, other times with great emotion.
A sad, almost somber film that approaches its narrative with utmost solemnity, with a deliberate pace and a desire to not let anything escape its gaze.
An intelligent script that unfolds well and direction that succeeds in handling the script and the performances.
Our Opinion
Did we like it? It is a good, uncomfortable film, one of those that you must be willing to watch and take the time to look into the eyes of a film that wants to confront death and approach it up close, very close.
Release Date
August 16, 2023
Where to Watch “Eye of the Storm”
Director
The Cast
Hsieh Ying Shiuan
Angel Lee
Yung-Cheng Chang
Wang Ming Tai
Eye of the Storm
Movie title: 疫起
Movie description: Right after thoracic surgeon Dr. Xia is called back to treat an emergency patient, an unknown virus outbreak forces the hospital to go into lockdown, trapping Xia, along with hundreds of healthcare providers, patients, and their families. To find out the origin of the virus and stop it from spreading, Xia partners with tabloid journalist Jin. Registered nurse An and intern Li are also trapped in the hospital and despite the grave danger, they prioritize the patients and make unthinkable choices. Will they survive this epidemic?
Date published: August 13, 2023
Country: Taiwan
Duration: 118 mins
Director(s): Lin Jun Yang
Actor(s): Wang Bo-chieh, Jing-Hua Tseng, Simon Hsueh, Chloe Xiang, Hsieh Ying Shiuan, Angel Lee
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Companies: Catchplay
Our Opinion
Did we like it? It is a good, uncomfortable film, one of those that you must be willing to watch and take the time to look into the eyes of a film that wants to confront death and approach it up close, very close.
