Maidgethma
Wonderfully offbeat film!
GurlyIamBeach
Instant Favorite.
Senteur
As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.
Aneesa Wardle
The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
akilbunglowala
I usually don't go in to a film totally blind (no pun intended), so I knew it was about a theologian who slowly goes blind and decides to keep recordings of his blindness. Interesting enough. Somehow I delayed watching it until now. I am here to tell you it is a truly rewarding experience. Don't let the title put you off. Slowly and surely you'll be immersed in John Hull's baritone voice with his succinct observations on life. And you will applaud his caring family who are always by his side. Rain drops have taken on a whole new meaning for me now.
Gareth Crook
At the beginning of this film onscreen text informs you that John Hull went blind in the 80s and subsequently kept an audio diary. Those original recordings are now used in the film and the actors lip sync to them... It's a beautiful idea and instantly grabs you in this really personal and at times heartbreaking story. Ultimately though, this is expertly crafted and awe-inspiring. It's a theological study as much as a practical one, but John's resolve really leaves you wondering how you'd cope yourself, if you could be as strong. Going blind is a scary thought, but John Hull proves without doubt it need not be.
Red_Identity
The premise behind this is quite intriguing and so going into it I was really curious about how the whole thing would be executed. It's a documentary and drama film at the same time. It reminded me a lot of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. There's something quite lyrical and poetic about the filmmaking. The cinematography needed to really capture the kinds of images that could be going around this man's head and through the recorded audio it is able to effectively capture that. I think a problem I had with the film is that I never fully connected with it. I was only able to admire it from a distance because of that disconnect, and because of that I am able to recommend it and say that it is worth the effort. However, it is unfortunate that I wasn't able to like it more.
Geoff Challinger
Notes on Blindness is an insight into the life of John Hull, an academic who, as he descended into the darkness of total blindness, began to record his thoughts and feelings on the process. These very recordings are lip-synced by the actors and they, along with a unique visual style, attempt to recreate John's perspective on his experience. Obviously this is not a slapstick comedy but the end-product is moving and it's taught me a lot about blindness that I'd never considered. He has a slightly different take on going blind to some others so it's always going to be a personal and subjective viewpoint. Magnificent bit of film-making and the thought that this is the Director's first feature is hard to credit. Give it a best documentary Oscar now.