In a world where everyone has a camera in their pocket, the government has cameras on street corners and businesses have cameras in their lobbies, when can you be sure that you're not being recorded and who can you trust?
Comments thoughtfully on a collective eradication of private life via sundry screens and lenses, and a fraying of the social fabric as a result.
Stranger Eyes 2024
Mò shì lù
When their baby is kidnapped with no immediate leads, Junyang (Wu Chien-Ho) and Peiying (Anicca Panna) are understandably distraught. Things become even more intense when DVDs start to land on their doorstep, with footage of them shot from a handheld camera. They start to suspect their neighbour of stalking them and being the kidnapper of their child, then to uncover secrets – about the neighbour and each other – that lead to unforeseen consequences. But will these revelations lead them any closer to the whereabouts of their child?
Classic surveillance-themed thrillers such as Lost Highway and Sliver get an update as director Yeo Siew Hua uses modern technology to create an unrivalled atmosphere of paranoia and unease. In an era where social media and personal branding has replaced community and bonds with our actual neighbours, Stranger Eyes calls the culture of the camera into question. — Jordan Salomen