Red Eye
Implausible,
sure, but not as dumb as others in the genre
Red Eye, on the surface, is a standard Hollywood thriller
full of implausible plot beats — could the two leads really
carry on a private conversation aboard a jet plane as they
do without half the cabin in on the plot? That is just for
starters. Still, it is refreshingly lean in construction
and execution, and unlike so many modern thrillers it
doesn't wear out its welcome. Director Wes Craven plays the
audience without beating them into submission, and the
result is a true popcorn-friendly summer film.
The plot concerns a young woman — probably far too young to
be the manager of a four-star hotel, but we'll let that go
— whose job places her at the heart of an assassination
plot. After meeting a charming man at an airport bar, she
is pleased to find that he is booked into the seat next to
her aboard her flight. She soon finds out, however, that he
is not so charming after all when he delivers an ultimatum:
either help him in his terrorist plan or her father will be
killed. Trapped in the plane, with no where to run, will
she be able to outwit the terrorists?
Rachel McAdams is fetching and sympathetic in her role;
strong and resourceful without being a stock Amazon, the
new cliché of feminine ideal. Cillian Murphy, seen earlier
this summer as the scarecrow in Batman Begins, offers
another memorable turn as a total creep. Suspend your
disbelief and you'll be rewarded with a decent time at the
movies. Buy some popcorn and don't think too
critically.