Sight movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Sight

This lovely film by Angel Studios is now playing in select theaters

RATING: PG-13

LENGTH: 1 hour 40 minutes

Movie Review Mom GRADE: A

SPONSOR of Today’s movie review:

To support the good movies that Angel Studios is making, you can donate a free ticket for someone else to see this film or join the Angel Studios Guild where you can get early access, free tickets, livestreams for members only, and discounts on merchandise. You can also help the studio decide which movies to make and when to launch them!

I love that Angel Studios offers a Pay It Forward invitation to viewers so that more people can be exposed to their movies for free. Ticket pre-sales were an impressive 32,000, which exceeded their expectations of 20,000.

Angel Studios has been consistently releasing uplifting movies and changing the way movies are released in the USA. Their goal is to amplify light. We definitely need more of that in this crazy, dark world. You can learn more about them at www.Angel.com

Dr. Ming Wang wrote an autobiography that the film was based on called “From Darkness to Sight.” Link: https://amzn.to/3yL49Cd

IN A NUTSHELL:

The amazing story is based on true events! It’s about Dr. Ming Wang who established the Wang Foundation for Sight Restoration, a non-profit charity that has helped patients from over 40 states in the U.S. and 55 countries worldwide, with eye surgeries that have been performed free of charge.

This inspiring story is a breath of fresh air from all of the garbage that Hollywood often pumps out. Congratulations to Andew Hyatt who directed the film and co-wrote it with John Duigan and Buzz McLaughlin.

Already, the movie has been nominated for and won awards at various film festivals, including Best Picture.

THINGS I LIKED:

It was fascinating to watch and learn about the experiences of the doctor’s childhood that influenced his strong desire to become an eye surgeon.
We get to spend time in China during the film. I’ve traveled there many times for business trips and love it there for many reasons. I took my two youngest sons with me to perform (they’re break dancers) when I was doing a speaking tour and they both fell in love with it too. One of them returned to teach English in China, while the other married a lovely young woman from Hong Kong! I now have an absolutely adorable grandson who is half Chinese! Another one is coming in September!
In the film, the destructive Chinese Cultural Revolution is represented. I saw the negative consequences of it when I traveled around China. So many historic buildings were destroyed. The Chinese father in the story explained to his son that the strength of the country was because of their rich traditions. Destroying them has left a painful hole in the culture, as well as broken up families. I talked to people who told me about how some of their family members simply “disappeared” when they went against the government.
We get to hear the Chinese instrument, the “erhu”. When I saw it played in China, it was only by old men in the parks. The word “er” means 2 in Mandarin. The erhu only has 2 strings. The word “hu” means “foreign” or “the northern folk”. Today, it’s considered a traditional, country instrument.
I thought it was cute when one of the Chinese students who went to MIT asked, “What is pizza?” They didn’t get pizza in China until recently and they’re not huge fans of it. They eat it with plastic gloves and put strange things on it!
Bring tissues. You’re probably going to cry!
We learn at the end of the movie that the film has been lovingly dedicated to Ming’s parents. We also get to see pictures of the Wang family from 1975.
In addition, we get to see video clips from when the “real” Maria first saw herself with her “new” eyes.
I love that the film launched during Asian-American and Pacific Islander Month to honor the culture that is featured in the film.
I also really love that Angel Studios has partnered with theaters in using the latest technology to bring the movie to all viewers, even those with sensory issues such as hearing and vision loss.
Fun fact: Some of Dr. Wang’s previous patients include Dolly Parton, Charlie Daniels, Naomi Judd, and Kenny Chesney!
The real Dr. Ming Wang actually set up an office on set while the movie was being shot in order to help crew members and others. So sweet!

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

The film bounces around a bit on a timeline, so it would have been helpful to have more years posted on the screen to better know where we were in the various scenes.
Some of the pacing is a bit slow.
Some viewers may be turned off by the request for donations at the end of the movie and claim the film was one giant informercial. I wasn’t offended at all, especially when you consider that Dr. Ming Wang donated his patent for free and flew around the world to train other doctors how to use it for free. He gave his personal cell phone number to every patient after surgery. Does your doctor do that? Exactly. Mine neither. I can barely get an appointment months out with my primary care provider!
The Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976 that is represented in the movie was not a grassroots “uprising”, as the movie portrays, but a sociopolitical movement launched by Mao Zedong, himself, to gain control over the Communist party. It crippled the economy, created chaos for a decade, and nearly two million people died from hunger and bloodshed.
We don’t get closure on one of the characters.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Mandarin is spoken in some scenes, so viewers need to read the subtitles on the screen.
Violence
Destruction
Bullying
We see several blind people.

THEMES WORTH TALKING ABOUT:

Racism
China
Persistence
Hope
Memories
Valuing the past, appreciating the present, and moving forward into the future
Seeing beyond our own pain
Letting go of the past and finding peace

FUNNY LINES:

“Are you asking me out on a date? You didn’t quite stick the landing, but yes.” – Anie (Danni Wang)
“Facebook for cats!” – Yu Wang (Garland Chang)

INTERESTING LINES:

“An uprising is when people want change.” – Zhensheng Wang (Donald Heng)
“Ming, we must be patient. Life is not always a straight line.” – Alian (Leanne Wang)
“A father’s duty is to protect, to help the children feel at peace, even when they do not always believe it themselves.” – Lao Bin (Peter Chan)
“We have to do our best. That’s all we can do.” – Misha Barnovsky (Greg Kinnear)
“There’s more to life than what we see.” – Ming Wang (Terry Chen)
“The present is made possible by the past.” – Anie (Danni Wang)