Sight (2024) Review : The unseen journey of a Chinese eye doctor

Andrew Hyatt’s latest Indie biopic, ‘Sight’, traces the true story of the trailblazing ophthalmologist, Dr. Ming Wang, who immigrated to the United States from China and had to confront inhibitions from his past, while working on curing a blind patient. Inspired by Dr. Wang’s autobiography, ‘From Darkness to Sight: A Journey from Hardship to Healing’, the movie explores faith, grief, and coming to terms with what is beyond one’s control.

This movie tells the tale of Dr. Ming Wang (Terry Chen), a young man in China who had aspirations of becoming a doctor like his father and grandpa before a rebellion during the Cultural Revolution derailed his family’s hopes. After his first love, Lili (Sara Ye) suddenly vanished without a trace, Wang felt pressured to leave the country. Despite this, he put a lot of effort into his studies and graduated from MIT and Harvard with honors before starting his own eye clinic in Nashville, Tennessee. He first encounters the reserved Kajal (Mia Swami Nathan) in 2007. Kajal is a young Indian orphan under the care of nuns who comes to the US in the hopes of having her vision restored after enduring horrendous mistreatment.

Wang had to reconcile his limitations as a doctor with his prior losses of love and nation as the movie cuts back and forth between his past and present. Technically, it’s an immigrant story. However, the ability to see the light in the darkest of circumstances overshadows the psychological impact of escaping to a foreign nation.

Chen’s portrayal of Dr. Wang is often inconsistent but his sequences with Dr. Misha Bartnovsky (Greg Kinnear) as fatigued co-workers with opposing methods to problem solving while trying to cure the Indian patient, are among of the film’s highlights. Ben Wang, who plays Dr. Wang before attending medical school, is especially excellent as a young guy trapped in a sea of turmoil and early sadness after Lili is taken away from him.

The screenplay appeared to be a little slow initially, but it was compensated for by some surprises as the plot progressed. Although not Hyatt’s best work, this film would undoubtedly be included in the list of uplifting immigrant stories as the message states that each one of us should try to work miracles for others.