EYE FOR AN EYE is a new horror-fantasy movie adapted from the graphic novel “Mr. Sandman”. A fascinating universe and good overall movie, but it needs better pacing. Read our full Eye for an Eye horror movie review here!
EYE FOR AN EYE is a horror movie with a fantasy plot about revenge over bullies via a nightmare curse. This horror-fantasy is based on the graphic novel “Mr. Sandman”, and it’s easy to understand why someone would want to adapt this.
It truly is some fascinating worldbuilding. Of course, a little more explanation for the character (or just more excessive backstory) wouldn’t have hurt. Also, it’s too long due to some slower passages that don’t help it. However, it is very well made with practical effects.
Continue reading our Eye for an Eye horror movie review below. Find it on Digital and in Select Theaters from June 20, 2025.
A new life in small-town Florida
With Eye for an Eye, we follow Anna (Whitney Peak) shortly after she has lost her parents and right before she’s starting her senior year of High School. However, having lost her parents, she is forced to leave her home in New York and move to a small town in Florida.
Here, she will live with her grandmother (S. Epatha Merkerson). This woman isn’t someone Anna has had much to do with, so it’s a strange and uncomfortable situation. Her grandmother is blind and not the most warm and caring person.
Quick side note: It’s never fully explained how or why this is the only solution. I mean, the girl is almost an adult and surely, someone closer by (aunts or friends of the family) could’ve taken the girl in, so she could finish High School in her Brooklyn home?!
Anyway, that’s why Anna is quick to fall into a bad crowd with some rough teenage locals (Finn Bennett and Laken Giles). Before long, this new “friendship” results in Anna being a bystander to a brutal act of violence.
A nightmare curse that steals your eyeballs
After this violent event, Anna finds herself caught up in what seems to be a nightmarish folklore of the small town community. Only, it turns out that the lore has survived because it’s very real.
It’s the lore of “Mr. Sandman”, who can be called upon by a bullied child. When asked to help get revenge on bullies, this demonic presence will find the bullies and take their eyeballs. Yep, that’s the revenge.
And remember, the rather cold grandmother of Anna is blind. Just sayin’!
The entire curse plot and the execution of the revenge using a lot of practical effects (and some well-made CGI, I should add) work remarkably well. In fact, the core nightmare curse of Eye for an Eye which results in stolen eyeballs, is pretty damn sick.
In the good horror way!
Perfect for this gothic fairy tale set in a small town seemingly forgotten by time. This also comes across by the use of electronics from decades past. We do see smartphones, but we also see very old TV sets and a Polaroid camera. Very retro, but also just what’s around.
Watch Eye for an Eye on Digital and in Theaters
As already mentioned, Eye for an Eye was adapted from a graphic novel titled “Mr. Sandman”. The script was written by the author and artist of the graphic novel, Elisa Victoria, who has continued this gorgeous worldbuilding on screen.
The choice to use mainly practical effects helps everything come together much better.
Also, the director of the movie is the successful music video director Colin Tilley, which gives a nice edge to the visuals. He previously directed music videos for artists like Kendrick Lamar, Zendaya, and Megan Thee Stallion.
I feel it’s also worth noting that this horror-fantasy was produced by Ley Line Entertainment. They also produced Everything Everywhere All at Once, which is a great selling point for me.
Still, the runtime of 100 minutes (efficiently, a little less without credits) could’ve been shorter. Tighter pacing would have done wonders for this. Particularly towards the end. It’s gorgeous, but unless you watch it in a theater, it definitely feels too slow.
Eye for an Eye is out in Select Theaters and On Demand from June 20, 2025.
Details
Director: Colin Tilley
Writers: Elisa Victoria, Michael Tully
Cast: Whitney Peak, S. Epatha Merkerson, Golda Rosheuvel, Laken Giles, Finn Bennett
Plot
Anna, grieving the sudden death of her parents, relocates from New York to a small Florida town to live with the grandmother she’s never met. Isolated and in unfamiliar surroundings, she falls in with a couple of local teens, but when she becomes a bystander to an unforgivable act of violence, she finds herself ensnared by Mr. Sandman – the twisted soul of a tormented child who haunts bullies’ dreams before feasting on their eyeballs when they finally wake.
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