Eagle Eye Review

There are few films in recent memory that perhaps are afforded a slight reprieve on the small screen. Most cinematic duds only revel in their mediocrity on DVD but D.J. Caruso's Hitchcockian riff, "Eagle Eye" manages to regroup, refocus and gets its eye in where it counts second time around.

Coming over like a Version 2.0 of "Enemy of The State", this high-tech thriller sees Shia LaBeouf, always good value in these troubled times, as a young man framed, rather spectacularly, by a mysterious voice on the end of his mobile. It would seem that, along with Michelle Monaghan's single mom, our Shia has been singled out by a nefarious AI and used in a complicated, and faintly ridiculous, war game.

Caruso and LeBeouf have developed something of a shorthand together since their time spent on "Disturbia" (another Hitchcock steal) and it just about drags this film across the finish line. Derided upon its cinematic release for being as substantial and flavoursome as a rice cake, "Eagle Eye" does try and touch upon the thorny issue of American foreign policy whilst injecting some Saturday spectacle with some nifty Ghost-in-the-Machine licks.

OK, granted Monaghan is a spare part in this tech orgy but there are some supporting players to fall back on - chief among them Billy Bob Thornton who is clearly having a lot more fun than most as a disgruntled CIA. Perhaps the thing that let "Eagle Eye" down the most at the multiplex was its washed-out ending, something which the extras try hard to rectify.

DVD Extras

Deleted Scenes - your standard clutch of poorly thought out scenes deleted for a good reason.

Gag Reel - Really? In a film like this? Actually, this is worth its weight in gold and acts as a great pick-me-up for all the earnest tech speak within the film

Alternate Ending - Much, much better than the original offering...how many times can you actually say that?

Eagle Eye Review

The latest collaboration between Disturbia's director DJ Caruso and star Shia LaBeouf, has been touted as a paranoid surveillance thriller for the MTV generation and boasts Steven Spielberg as an executive producer. The latter has clearly been somewhat distracted by other projects of late, as nothing else can explain why he would be willing to put his name to this. For a film that is supposed to be so overtly modern, "Eagle Eye" already feels outdated.

The plot is far too convoluted and ridiculous to summarise with any degree of clarity. Suffice to say, after a promising opening where LaBeouf's Jerry returns to his apartment to find it stacked to the rafters with assorted weapons and chemicals, he is swiftly forced on the run by a relentless unseen enemy. As well as being pursued by invisible forces, a case of mistaken identity also means that the FBI are on his tail and he is joined in this deadly pursuit by single mother Rachel (Michelle Monaghan). Basically, Shia runs, Michelle cries and everything else gets lost in a cacophony of explosions and gunfire.

"Disturbia", although clearly derivative and often disjointed, showed flashes of promise. However, Caruso has seemingly built on the former and now appears incapable of putting anything coherent on screen other than a great impersonation of Michael Bay. The fundamental problem though is an appalling script and a central premise that fatally undermines the whole enterprise. Dumber than a sackful of Jade Goodys, "Eagle Eye" makes "Transformers" look like Tarkovsky.

Ironically, given the plot of the film, "Eagle Eye" never forges an identity of it's own. LaBeouf reprises his cocky but reluctant hero role from any number of recent films and Monaghan is completely anonymous. The charismatic Michael Chiklis and Rosario Dawson are also sidelined, whilst Billy Bob Thornton looks bored as he sleepwalks through his role of grizzled investigator.

You won't believe what you're seeing and not in a good way.