We live in a world of uncertainty. Nations rise and fall; great men shine and are forgotten; love is lost and won. But in the midst of chaos, there has always been one constant: Jessica Alba's undeniable hotness. All other beauty falls by the wayside of the throne upon which she sits, perched in regal majesty. Truly, she is a dame to kill for. In her newest endeavor (aside from becoming a mother), "The Eye," Alba braves the scariness that is modern science in an attempt to live a normal-sighted life. The premise of "The Eye" is that Sydney Wells (played by Alba), a blind violinist, receives a corneal transplant that allows her to see again. Everything goes according to plan - that is, until Sydney soon finds out that she ... sees dead people!
Question: I get the impression from the trailer that the movie deals with that whole idea with cellular memory, where you get a transplant and start to get the memories of the person before. Do you think that's ... realistic?
Jessica Alba: I mean, it's kind of scientifically proven. And I actually met a guy this week who hated pasta. And after his liver transplant all he wants to eat most of the time - like three nights a week he wants to eat pasta. And he lost 30 pounds. He didn't like going to theme parks, ever, and now when he and his wife go on vacation, he wants to go to theme parks and go on scary roller coasters. And he found out that his donor was a 16-year-old boy who loved roller coasters, didn't like sweets. Oh yeah, he started to not like any sweets - no brownies, no sugar - and I think that's why he lost the 30 pounds. And the kid didn't like sugar, loved pasta, loved scary rides.
Q: What sort of research did you do for the role? How did it feel to have to pretend to be blind at first?
JA: I went to a blind orientation center in L.A. and one in New Mexico. I learned how to read Braille, walk with my cane, and label everything in the house, just sort of learning how to exist as someone who has blindness. They just thought I was another student, and they're all dealing with this thing happening to them; this tragic thing and I had to take my shades off and go home. And so that was a huge reality check for me.
Q: Which was more difficult: playing the violin or playing blind?
JA: Violin was definitely more difficult. You know, I played a soloist, but you have to be kind of the best of the best. And people who've been playing that instrument since they were three years old and give their whole life practicing eight hours a day still don't become soloists. They're just in the orchestra. The blindness I really studied, and I pretty much got down. But the violin is so hard.
Q: I remember the Hong Kong version of "The Eye" to be very, very original. How does the remake differ?
JA: It's definitely catered to an American audience - the more Western way of thinking about ghosts, you know. You're familiar with the Eastern way of, you know, making ghost stories and these horror movies. Spirits and mysticism are definitely more a part of their culture. It's just - they just have a different mentality about it. And in Western culture, people think you're absolutely nuts if you believe in ghosts, or if you see ghosts, and yeah, you're basically going insane. And so we dealt with the ghosts in this film in [that context].
Q: In prepping for this movie ... besides looking at the original, did you look at other Asian horror films or horror films or ghost films?
JA: Well, I've loved horror movies in general. My favorites are "Psycho" (1960), "Poltergeist" (1982), "It" (1990), "The Shining" (1980), "A Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984). I'm a fan, and that's why I wanted to do something in this genre.
Q: I noticed that you play a lot of dominant female roles like in movies such as "Sin City" (2005) and "Fantastic Four" (2005), and now obviously "The Eye." I was wondering why is it that you would choose to do those types of roles.
JA: Well, it's funny that you say that. "Dark Angel," (2000) yes. "Fantastic Four," (2005) yes. "Sin City," not really. She was kind of a damsel in distress and was kind of a victim in that movie. But more than anything, I definitely do play more dominant, stronger women than I do weak women. I don't know - probably because it's kind of who I am. I don't channel the victim maybe as well as I can channel someone who can go in and do her own thing. But you know, we'll see what happens later. I might be able to channel that a little bit more and find interesting roles in women who are victims. I personally want to go in a more indie route for a little while and have a bit more of a balance between the commercial movies and the indie movies that don't necessarily do as well. And ... aren't necessarily going to make it in the theaters. And I think it'll be fun to take more risks.
