Red Eye

Dreamworks pictures presents

Starring: Rachel McAdams, Cillian Murphy, Brian Cox

Directed by: Wes Craven

Rating: ****1/2

Plot: A woman is kidnapped during a, you guessed it red eye flight from Texas to Florida. The man tells her that is she does not help him assassinate a senator her father will die. Thriller antics ensue.

Acting: Rachel McAdams famous now for her part in the romantic film The Notebook and her the bitch of bitches in Mean Girls. Here she plays a real down to Earth regular girl. From the first shot of her she seems just real not fake or over the top. On her cell in a cab late for a plane, we've all been there. Her talent shines when the movie becomes serious and you really start to care about her and what happens. Cillian Murphy is now going to be stereotypes into playing bad guys. After his amazing but short screen time as Scare Crow in Batman Begins and now his character Jackson Rippner I don't think a leading male role in a romantic comedy is possible. He is almost too good at being creepy. The way he delivers dialogue is spot on and you actually really start to dislike the man which rarely happens in movies these days, where a bad guy really is a bad guy. These two work off each other very well and both push the movie along. Also Brian Cox doesn't play a bad guy for once. That was a surprise.

Directing/Writing: After the nuclear bomb which was called Cursed Wes Craven needed something good to get back to business. He choose the right script. This thriller is well written, a little over the top in places but in a movie like this it is expected. The beginning of the movie is what is very well done in my opinion it sets up everything and actually starts to make you think it is a romantic film, not a thriller. The entire second act is on an air plane which I thought would be annoying and too predictable. I was so wrong, everything moved very fast and Rippner is a smart guy so when McAdams character does something he figures out almost automatically. My only problem is with some sire characters in the film, like a little girl who just somehow randomly figures out that Rippner is a bad guy. This made no sense and was pointless to the story. Also the ending felt a little too like Scream for my tastes where Rippner becomes a slasher killer in a sense. Still the dialogue is quick and the film is very good at keeping you on your toes and there are really never any boring moments. A perfect way to end the summer.

Overall: See it for the very fun performances these two young actors give, very impressive. Besides that Wes Craven has made a high concept thriller that works. My expectations were low coming in and I was very surprised how much fun I had and also some surprises along the way.