Stranger Eyes is a definite success not only for director Siew Hua Yeo, but also for Singaporean cinema. This is the first film from the country to be nominated for the Venice International Film Festival’s Golden Lion award. This nomination is completely understandable, as Stranger Eyes perfectly combines the tension characteristic of a thriller with the conventions of in-depth psychological analysis. Siew Hua Yeo proves that other people’s eyes can perceive more…. 

In Stranger Eyes we meet a young couple who have been struggling for months with the disappearance of their daughter. A key role in the investigation is played by tossed mysterious DVDs that show the couple’s daily life – from seemingly insignificant moments to their most intimate moments. The recordings not only shock, but also mercilessly expose the fragility of their relationship. It turns out that the relationship, which was supposed to provide support, in fact rests on a fragile foundation. Both the mother – Peiying – and the father – Junyang – instead of looking to each other for support, grow increasingly distant from each other. Loneliness and the need to escape are growing in their relationship, further destabilizing their situation. 

An important theme of Stranger Eyes is a reflection on the presence of the individual on the Internet and the consequences of sharing his image. The film touches on a particularly sensitive issue – the publication of photos and recordings of children online, which is now widely discussed in the media. In one of the very first scenes, we hear Peiying firmly request that the footage of her daughter not be shared. However, her request is met with resistance from the child’s grandmother, who, guided by her own conviction that such actions are harmless, downplays the subject. At the same time, Peiying herself as a DJ regularly streams her music sets, building a relationship with her audience. This contrast – defending her daughter’s privacy on the one hand, and deliberately exposing herself on the other – becomes particularly significant when recordings from the stalker emerge. Yeo provokes the question: when we voluntarily share our image, are we not giving tacit permission to be stalked by strangers? Where does voluntary online presence end and invasion of privacy begin?   

However, the real stakes of Stranger Eyes seem to be not only security or privacy, but above all parenthood, and even more precisely fatherhood. This thread, hidden behind the facade of a police investigation, gradually gains in importance. This is the story not so much of a father-daughter relationship, but rather of a father about his daughter. One line, which appears twice in the film, is memorable: Not everyone should become a parent. These words appear in moments that cast a shadow on both the motivations of the mysterious voyeur and Junyang’s attitude. Is it possible that the stalker is not just a foreign intruder, but someone who – in a distorted way – is trying to point out to others their failure as parents? Or is it that Junyang, observing himself in others’ eyes, begins to understand that his image as a father is based on illusions?   

With its understatements and numerous twists and turns, Stranger Eyes stays with the viewer for a long time. Siew Hua Yeo creates a story that escapes the simple categories of thriller or family drama. This is a cinema that does not give ready answers but leaves with questions that are hard to ignore. 

The film Stranger Eyes (dir. Siew Hua Yeo) is to be seen as part of the 18th Mastercard OFF CAMERA in the Eye for an Eye section, sponsored by zondacrypto and Rzeczpospolita.  

Screening list:  

• 02/05/2025 | 18:00 | Small Hall | MOS MASTERCARD Birthday Cinema.  

Marcelina Kłębek