http://www.moviereviewblog.net/2005/09/12/red-eye-by-wes-craven/ itsvery Movie Review - independent film reviews Tue, 02 Feb 2010 11:04:02 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 http://www.moviereviewblog.net/2005/09/12/red-eye-by-wes-craven/comment-page-1/#comment-17 Movie Review » FLIGHTPLAN by Robert Schwentke Sun, 23 Oct 2005 19:45:26 +0000 http://www.itsvery.net/moviereviews/2005/09/12/red-eye-by-wes-craven/#comment-17 [...] The trailer seems to promise a psychological thriller ? la Hitchcock or M. Night Shyalaman - is Julia dead or alive, was she ever on board of the plane or not, that seems to be the question. But this plot is underdeveloped and unconvincing - you never really believe that Julia is just on board in Kyle’s imagination. You just wonder what’s up with those knowing glances the crew and the passengers exchange as soon as Kyle starts looking for Julia. Are these glances a hint for the audience of a conspiracy going on (Kyle strangeley never seems to notice them) or just bad acting? This put aside, Jodie Foster is superb and convincing as wife in mourning and as anxious mother, keeping it just slightly this side of hysteria. The same can be said about Sean Bean - if you ever happen to be on a plane in trouble, you wish to have a flight captain like him. Peter Sarsgaard’s air marshal however seems to be just very sleepy. When it’s clear for Kyle (and the audience) that Julia has really been kidnapped, the plot moves into a more conventional direction - it’s DIE HARD, or maybe PANIC ROOM, on a plane, with Jodie Foster - and another complicately constructed and implausible sinister plan on a plane - a bit like RED EYE, but less entertaining. Which is a problem, because the ‘psychological thriller’ aspect fails, and what’s left is lots of serious drama, the constructed plot, and a serious lack of humor (in fact, there is only one slightly funny scene when a passenger is immediately convinced Kyle is right when she suspects some Arabs are involved in the kidnapping of Julia and is ready to assault them on the spot). This and some other slapped-on allusions on 9/11 feel just like that - slapped-on without contributing to the story. When you want to see just one airplane-thriller this year, watch FLIGHTPLAN for serious drama and Jodie Foster, but watch RED EYE when you are looking for entertainment! [...] [...] The trailer seems to promise a psychological thriller ? la Hitchcock or M. Night Shyalaman – is Julia dead or alive, was she ever on board of the plane or not, that seems to be the question. But this plot is underdeveloped and unconvincing – you never really believe that Julia is just on board in Kyle’s imagination. You just wonder what’s up with those knowing glances the crew and the passengers exchange as soon as Kyle starts looking for Julia. Are these glances a hint for the audience of a conspiracy going on (Kyle strangeley never seems to notice them) or just bad acting? This put aside, Jodie Foster is superb and convincing as wife in mourning and as anxious mother, keeping it just slightly this side of hysteria. The same can be said about Sean Bean – if you ever happen to be on a plane in trouble, you wish to have a flight captain like him. Peter Sarsgaard’s air marshal however seems to be just very sleepy. When it’s clear for Kyle (and the audience) that Julia has really been kidnapped, the plot moves into a more conventional direction – it’s DIE HARD, or maybe PANIC ROOM, on a plane, with Jodie Foster – and another complicately constructed and implausible sinister plan on a plane – a bit like RED EYE, but less entertaining. Which is a problem, because the ‘psychological thriller’ aspect fails, and what’s left is lots of serious drama, the constructed plot, and a serious lack of humor (in fact, there is only one slightly funny scene when a passenger is immediately convinced Kyle is right when she suspects some Arabs are involved in the kidnapping of Julia and is ready to assault them on the spot). This and some other slapped-on allusions on 9/11 feel just like that – slapped-on without contributing to the story. When you want to see just one airplane-thriller this year, watch FLIGHTPLAN for serious drama and Jodie Foster, but watch RED EYE when you are looking for entertainment! [...]

]]>