An unusual meteor shower leaves most people blind. Genetically-engineered plants ? capable of movement and communication; possessing a deadly sting whip ? run amok. Civilisation collapses. Chaos, of course, ensues.

'The Day of the Triffids' is genuinely terrifying. And without the ferocious flora, even more so. 'Blindness' pulls back the '50s sci-fi mumbo-jumbo to craft an entirely plausible look at a society stripped of its conventions.

When an unexplained epidemic rapidly renders the world's population sightless, governments, as ever, are unprepared. Sufferers of the highly contagious "White Sickness" ? victims see nothing but white ? are dumped in abandoned hospitals, barricaded and guarded by soldiers, largely left to fend for themselves.

In one of these facilities are can-do ophthalmologist Mark Ruffalo and his neglected wife Julianne Moore who, inexplicably, is the only person unaffected by the plague. Feigning the affliction, she's effectively pulling the strings (and playing mother/nurse/electrician/security guard) as her husband works himself into a position of authority.

But a hopeless situation turns helpless as the beds fill up, the food supplies dwindle, and the renegade Gael Garcia Bernal declares himself King of Ward Three.

Who needs vicious vegetation when you've got something far more dangerous: humans fighting for survival.

'City of God' director Fernando Meirelles unblinkingly documents the downward spiral, vividly bringing to life a Portuguese novel through typically startling cinematography and editing. Jarring camera angles, artistically blurred shots and unexpected cuts are stylistic reminders of visual impairment without ever looking gimmicky.

His handling of the increasingly unsettling narrative is less accomplished ? issues with exposition appear and the visualisation of conflicts seems unintentionally chaotic ? but actors like Ruffalo and Moore especially are experienced guides.

With their lives in sharp focus, Meirelles brings genuine humanity and authenticity to a story almost too frightening to imagine.

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