Better than Expected
- Review By:
- PoseyDozer
- Date:
- February 7, 2009
- Movie:
- Red Eye
- Director:
- Wes Craven
- Released:
- 2005
- Good Guy:
- Lisa Reisart
- Played By:
- Rachel Mcadams
- Bad Guy:
- Jackson Rippner
- Played By:
- Cillian Murphy
- MPAA Rating:
- PG-13
- Family Friendly Ages:
- Older teens
If suspense is knowing what is going to happen next and being forced to wait for it, Red Eye delivers. It's the story of plucky heroine Lisa Reisart (Rachel McAdams), who is blackmailed by airline seat mate Jack Rippner (Cillian Murphy) into assisting in the murder of a government official and his family. There's nothing new here plot-wise. Rippner foils Reisart's early attempts to get help and alert police to the diabolical plan while airborne, but Reisart stabs him in the throat with a ball-point pen — eww! — just as the plane lands. She escapes in time to save the poor government official and his family. And, predictably enough, just as you're ready to put your coat on and head out to the car, Rippner, with a scarf around his neck to hide the hole from which he extracted the pen, finds Reisart at home. A fight ensues. You know the rest.
As predictable as it may be, Red Eye is a watchable thriller. McAdams is solid and believable in her part. She's scared, but chooses not to be a victim. Thankfully, Director Craven refrains from turning Murphy's character into a sadistic psychopath. Instead he focuses on creating a claustrophobic atmosphere in the plane, where Reisart's options are few and Rippner excels at masking what's going on. The final scenes in Reisart's home run a little long, but manage to keep the little knot in your stomach tied tight all the way to the end.
Good review. I agree that it was better than expected. Still, I thought there were some plot holes... the elaborate assassination plan in which all this timed, coordinated communication was occurring left out communicating with the assassins altogether. Still... I appreciated that the heroine could handle herself.