Eagle Eye

If you’re heading to the cinema and want to watch a movie packed with car chases, explosions and a lot of running around without, having to think all that much about the plot then this is right up your alley. After the relatively successful Disturbia; Steven Spielberg, director D.J Caruso and Shia LaBeouf team up yet again, this time to venture into a political/espionage thriller that spills into the Sci-Fi genre. 

Shia LaBeouf plays Jerry Shaw, a troubled young man who for a lack of a better word is a slacker while Michelle Monaghan plays single mom Rachel Holloman. The film follows as the two stranger, Jerry and Rachel are brought together when they find themselves being manipulated into a series of high-risk Mission Impossible-type situations. Commanded by a mysterious woman's voice  and contacted via any phone in their viccinity, Jerry and Rachel co-operate in hopes of staying alive. Meanwhile, FBI investigators played by Billy Bob Thornton and Rosario Dawson are in constant pursuit of Jerry and Rachel, whom they initially suspect to be terrorist. The woman's voice plays puppet-master  throughout the film until the plot twist is revealed.

The camera movements are (sometimes unnecessarily) frenzied, blurred and high-speed action is often disorientating for viewers but serves as a good metaphor to the anarchy and panic of the film that the characters experience. There’s no neat love story intertwined into the action, which is refreshing for a typical blockbuster flick such as this. While there’s some big names in the cast; Shia LeBeouf steals the movie and it’s not a stretch to say he made the film tolerable. His acting has markedly improved from his previous stints in Transformers and Indiana Jones.

Eagle Eye has been bashed by critics in the States for its far-fetched storyline and its attempts to comment on our culture’s preoccupation with terrorism and its ‘Big Brother’ themes. And for some this aspect of the film may be the tipping point but if you’re willing to overlook the improbable then you’ll enjoy the film. Keep your expectations low and you’ll be one of the ones coming out of the cinema actually liking the movie.

Cast Shia LaBeouf, Michelle Monaghan, Rosario Dawson, Michael Chiklis, Billy Bob Thorton Director D.J Caruso Runtime 118 minutes Opens 1 October