Red Eye (Craven, 2005)
Wes Craven, the man behind “A Nightmare on Elm Street” and the “Scream” films, has moved away from gristly horror in exchange for tense thrill in “Red Eye.” In “Red Eye,” Craven attempts to create a different film – one that is full of tension and panic, but that doesn’t rely on plot twists or crazy reveals to woo the audience into enjoying it. Though the attempt is an honest and novel one, the film ultimately falls flat because of its lack of substance.
Lisa Reisert (Rachel McAdams) is a young, successful hotel manager away on business. When she arrives at the airport to catch a plane home, she finds that her flight has been delayed. In line at the ticket desk, she meets Jackson Rippner (Cillian Murphy), a charming, handsome young man who seems to have taken an odd liking to Lisa. The two hit it off over drinks and nachos. When Lisa finally boards she finds that she is seated next to Jackson. Coincidence? Actually, no.
You see, Jackson is actually a professional assassin hired to kidnap Lisa. The plan is thus: Jackson is to force Lisa to aid him in the offing of a political figure staying in her hotel. If she fails to cooperate, Jackson will have one of his men kill Lisa’s father (who’s played by a criminally underused Brian Cox).
The majority of the film takes place on the plane, and the location works wonders. It’s cramped and claustrophobic in there – no way out, and no one to help. Craven utilizes the space and, for a little while, delivers in thrills.
But once the two get off the plane, the film turns into a mindless chase sequence, and the film loses all semblance of quality. The ending is anti-climatic and dull, and the action is just poorly executed. Lisa, who is a tiny, lithe woman, dispatches Jackson with relative ease. Before the films end, Jackson is stabbed in the throat with a pen, outrun multiple times, attacked with a shoe and a stick, and shot.
The two young talents are fine in the film. McAdams and Murphy both have immense potential, and the couple has fantastic on-screen chemistry with one another. The performances, however, lose any substantial meaning in the climax.
“Red Eye” starts out strong, picks up momentum near the middle, and then trips and falls flat on its face in the end. It’s a promising opening with a disappointing conclusion.
The Final Verdict: 5/10
2 comments:
you are sadly mistaken my good friend.
Cillian Murphy is terrifying in this movie, as well as the fact that they're on a freaking plane with no bloody exits!!
i will fight you. fight you real good.
think about it click...
the movie had to go somewhere to throw-off the audience. and don't tell me you didn't cringe when she stabbed him with that pen.
who the hell gets stabbed in the throat with a pen??
i leave you with one thumb up for the movie (and the fact that you're my hero, mathew click) and one thumb way down for a downer review.
Alright, Summer (I'm assuming this is Summer, seeing as how there is only one person on the planet that would consider me a role model), I'll bite.
Yes, Cillian Murphy's performance is excellent and adequetly chilling. I really like the guy -- I have since his breakthrough role in "28 Days Later" (rent it if you've never seen it). But he's reduced to stumbling around and wheezing like an idiot in the third act, and it detracts immensely from his overall creepiness and effectiveness as a villain,
I liked the film. I enjoyed it well enough. But, as a huge fan of horror and thriller films, I felt that the movie really fell apart at the end, and that the "climax" left a lot to be desired. I was disappointed by how easily Cillian Murphy's character was defeated, and I felt like the last scene -- the one with Rachel McAdams telling off that angry couple in the hotel -- was just a plain stupid way to end the film.
Anyway ... just my two cents. I really appreciate the comment, though -- man, do I love talking about movies.
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