The story, after an introduction with a typical killing in Arabian soil, seems exciting. A guy, Jerry (Shia LaBeouf), and a woman, Rachel (Michelle Monaghan), are forced to escape from wherever they are so they can meet. A woman they don't know talks to them from any near phone and appears to control every street screen, traffic light and security camera in the city. What works here, more than this total control that the title aims to express, is the adrenaline; the weird experience of having to do everything you're told or losing your life.
"Eagle Eye" is another movie from D.J. Caruso, whose intelligence is still intact but is running out of ideas and inventiveness. The first scene, almost in plain desert, with security decisions being made and a call to the president, is something we've seen so many times and it's done with a lack of commitment that shocks. I don't know why Caruso may think that by having a powerful development he can fail to impress when his film has just began. Never mind; the director still delivers and knows how to keep you on your seat.
However, as I said, the ideas do not flow. In Caruso this is not the same situation as with any director. He's never too original, but combines his elements well. With "Eagle Eye" this strategy is coming to an end, as by the end of the movie there's not a single shot that can be remembered for its construction or for its use to generate impact (the ending is lovely though). It's fine, I don't blame him: it's an action-packed film, and his first one; but a lot of action scenes are difficult to understand, the point of view of the 'eagle eye' which is this total control that can locate anything anywhere becomes repetitive -technically and dramatically- after a while and Brian Tyler's score is (there's no doubt at the ending) a nice "M:I" rewrite with subtle melodramatic touches.
So what survives this time, I guess, it's the thought of the adrenaline and some unexpected moments that Caruso and the team of screenwriters still manage to achieve. And what survives is so effective that makes for a recommendable viewing, especially when Caruso's casting choices are never off. Here, LaBeouf is less convincing than in, for example, "Disturbia", but alongside Monaghan's photogenic perfection, they both construct together a killing action duo that has to be good because they have no choice. And they are not good, but as the movie advances they turn more and more clever and they resolve situations by doing things they clearly haven't done much before: using guns, running and driving fast cars. It's fair to say, in case my reference seemed too simple, that this "no way out" feeling works better for Monaghan, whose work is really heartfelt and at times touching.
Our not typical every day heroes are confronted by the highest level of United States intelligence, who always arrives a little bit late to every situation (funny commentary on a working effectiveness that's not effective...Is Caruso the only effective thing here?) and is led by Billy Bob Thornton. It's a weird acting choice for the man who does what he can in a role that finds him a little monotonous. Also carrying on the intelligent investigation we find a Defense Secretary played Michael Chiklis (from "The Shield"), who is definitely not in his element, and an army agent played by Rosario Dawson that might just be the film's best portrayal.
At this point, I don't know why I mention performances when, more and more, D. J. Caruso seems to be only about the hype. We'll see how it works for him in the near future.
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