Eagle Eye (2008)

Transformers star Shia LaBeouf headlines the high-tech, sophisticated action blockbuster known simply as Eagle Eye.  After the death of his twin brother, Jerry Shaw (LaBeouf) is arrested for being a suspected terrorist.  Allowed to make one phone call, Jerry is left in a room by himself.  He then speaks to someone who knows everything about his situation.  But before Jerry has a chance to gather his thoughts, a crane comes crashing through the window.  Able to escape, Jerry finds himself in the company of Rachel (Gone Baby Gone’s Michelle Monaghan).   Forced to drive from place to place with no real clue as to what is going on, the two of them become the subject of a federal investigation, which is headed up by Agent Thomas Morgan (Billy Bob Thornton).  While on the run from the authorities, a female voice on the other end of a telephone gives Jerry and Rachel instructions – which, unless they are followed will result in the death of Rachel’s son or capture by the FBI. 

There is twist after glorious twist in this tale as the two protagonists race against the clock to stay alive.  It turns out that more than one person is involved in the set-up, which Agent Zoe Perez (Rosario Dawson) is investigating.  With its intriguing concept, Eagle Eye has a lot more to offer than the standard conveyer belt of low quality blockbusters being released each year.  Although credibility is pushed a bit too far at times, this is a well constructed thriller.  Backed up by nicely accomplished performances and even more believable special effects, I was pleasantly surprised by the audacity of D.J. Caruso’s direction.  We live in a surveillance-driven society where we are being constantly monitored and kept on a tight leash at all times.  By taking this very simple idea and applying it to the big screen where the whole world can see it was quite a bold move, but remarkably enough, it works. 

Once or twice, Shia LaBeouf comes out of his comfort zone which is nice to see.  Monaghan is quite good but let’s face it, this is not an actors’ film.  The reason being that the effects seem to blot out everything else that is going on.  On more than one occasion, the dialogue is difficult to understand because the sound mix is a bit shabby here and there.  Otherwise, this is a hugely entertaining, edge-of-your-seat thrill ride that really needs to be seen twice just so that you don’t miss anything important.