# At First Sight (1999)

### reviewed by
James Sanford

Near the beginning of "At First Sight" there's a scene guaranteed to make almost every female viewer very, very jealous of Mira Sorvino, who plays Amy Benic, a worn-out yet still somewhat glamorous New York architect who's come to a mountain spa for a bit of rest. And what better treatment to start with than a full-body massage from the magic fingers of Virgil Adams, who is played by -- breathe deeply, ladies -- Val Kilmer? Minutes after he touches her, Amy is so relaxed, she bursts into tears. "Oh no," Virgil apologizes. "Did I go too deep?". Like Virgil, the slickly produced "At First Sight" tends to shy away from depth as well. Sad, since there's certainly the potential for a fascinating picture here as Virgil, blind since early childhood, is persuaded by Amy to participate in an experimental surgery program that may restore his vision. The movie's most intriguing stretch begins immediately after the operation, as Virgil struggles to reintrepret his world visually, instead of through his other senses. But after paying lip service to the challenges of adjusting to being able to see again, the Steve Levitt screenplay backpedals into the safer ground of conventional romance, as long-suffering Amy does her best to be patient while Virgil rants about how "seeing sucks." Though derived from a true story chronicled by Dr. Oliver Sacks in his 1996 book "An Anthropologist On Mars," "Sight" always seems closer to soap opera than case study. All the usual suspects are brought in, including Virgil's overprotective scold of a sister (Kelly McGillis), the hand-wringing research scientist (Bruce Davidson) and Amy's cynical ex-husband (Steven Weber), who's certain she'll come back to him on the rebound. The most enjoyable of these walking cliches, a smart-mouthed therapist played by Nathan Lane, ends up getting short shrift after a promising build-up. As for Kilmer and Sorvino, suffice to say the sparks don't exactly fly between them. Speaking in a slowed-down, slightly thick voice, Kilmer gives a performance that seems technically accurate but strangely chilly, while the generally bubbly Sorvino seems to be trying to channel the spirit of Justine Bateman here; she's all goofy looks, curled lips and "ohmigod" flutteriness. Though the movie is not particularly insightful as either a medical drama or a love story, director Irwin Winkler knows how to make a pretty picture, and "Sight" even works in a couple of creative touches, such as a distorted, disorienting double-exposure technique used to express Virgil's first visions of the people around him. The soundtrack, featuring two scintillating new songs from jazz pianist Diana Krall and a host of standards, is also highly agreeable, even though the sluggish plot it accompanies could inspire most viewers to close their eyes for a long winter's nap. James Sanford

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