DVD Reviews

Eagle Eye – Blu-ray Review

By Patrick Luce Jan 13, 2009, 11:14 GMT

After the success of Disturbia, director D.J. Caruso and star Shia LaBeouf reunite for this thriller costarring Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, Anthony Mackie, and Billy Bob Thornton. In Eagle Eye, an elaborate murder plot and its evil conspirator ensnare a pair of innocent people. ...more

Eagle Eye is a decent thriller with a premise that will make you think twice the next time you use a cell phone or step in front of a store security camera. Sadly, the film runs out of steam towards the ending – which gets a tad too silly to maintain any suspense.

Eagle Eye was directed by D.J. Caruso (Disturbia), written by Hillary Seitz, and stars Shia LaBeouf, Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, Michael Chiklis, and Billy Bob Thornton.

The film kicks off quickly with LaBeouf playing a nice enough loser working at a copy store and struggling to make each month’s rent. He gets a call that his twin brother (the smart one of the family) was killed in an automobile accident, and is forced to face his family after several years away.

He returns to find his apartment filled with pretty much every piece of equipment needed to be a terrorist, and receives a mysterious phone call warning the FBI is about to knock down his door. He ignores the call, is quickly taken into custody and questioned as a possible terrorist.

Michelle Monaghan plays a single mom who puts her son on a train so that he can travel with his school band to perform at the State of the Union address. She should have gone with him, but couldn’t resist the idea of a weekend free from mommy duty.

She is enjoying a night out on the town with friends when she receives a phone call informing her that her son’s train will be derailed if she doesn’t obey and help out LaBeouf.

This leads to a massive car chase/crash as LaBeouf and Monaghan run with FBI (led by Thornton) hot on his heels. As soon as they escape from the feds, the mysterious caller sends them on a series of errands and they start to realize they are being used as pawns in a much larger plan to overthrow the government.

Eagle Eye is a decent thriller, and I found myself enjoying it more after a second viewing. The whole Big Brother is watching and idea of cameras constantly recording you, phone calls being listened to, and your purchasing history being gathered can really play on your paranoia.

LaBeouf and Monaghan work well together and manage to have some chemistry. I felt the little romance angle was a tad forced, but the duo has plenty of energy to keep the plot believable.

LeBeouf has burned out a lot of people on his acting, but I think he does a great job in the film and seems at home with this type of huge stunt, Hollywood glossy film.

Monaghan at times seems lost in the shuffle, but you do get the idea she is a mom wanting to save her son (even if she was willing to pass on seeing him play at the State of the Union for a night out with the girls).

Caruso lets the paranoia build as the characters are constantly on the run and trying to figure out who is pulling the strings and getting them in deeper by the second. The film moves from one action sequence to the next and at times you feel as tired as the characters on the screen.

The film’s pace helps you look past some of its problems, and accept that the huge car chase could maybe actually happen. However, all the suspense and energy of the film is lost when the mysterious caller is revealed (I won’t spoil it in the review) and the film’s final act runs it into the ground.

Eagle Eye looks amazing on Blu-ray’s crystal clear picture and seems made for the high-def format thanks to its huge crash sequences and big stunts. It isn’t the most amazing looking film I have seen on Blu-ray, but will impress viewers with its picture and sound.

It comes loaded with special features including deleted scenes (which do little to help the film’s problems); a few making of features; an interesting feature with Caruso chatting with War Games director John Badham; a feature on how the technology of the film exists and how everyday electronics can be used to spy on people; a photo gallery; and trailers.

Eagle Eye is a decent thriller that manages to entertain despite a weak ending. With its Big Brother themed story, it could have been more suspenseful, but I would still recommend it to anyone wanting a fun popcorn movie.