Weekly Review -- Big Brother and hitmen for the new year

Eagle Eye (2008) -- One of the better conspiracy movies of recent years, this D.J. Caruso thriller is a hyper, fast, exciting ride from start to finish. Jerry Shaw (Shia LaBeouf) lives his life without ambition or pretense, while Rachel Holloman (Michelle Monaghan) is a preoccupied single mother. They are the last people one would expect to be recruited for a covert government mission, yet one day each receives a call from a mysterious woman, who blackmails them into a series of perilous tasks for an unknown purpose. Chased by representatives of various branches, including an acerbic FBI agent and a tenacious Air Force agent (Billy Bob Thornton and Rosario Dawson, respectively), Jerry and Rachel have to try and figure out the enigma, before they are either eliminated or sent to prison. The movie takes advantage of post-9/11 fears to create a world where technology is our enemy, tracking our every move and controlling our lives from morning until night. Indeed, one of the most interesting things about the movie is its display of imbalance between humans and our own inventions, that threaten to shut humanity down before we can return the favor. The action sequences are not only innovative and well done, but also contribute to the story's context. A movie like this one could easily have got lost within possible CGI and crash-boom-bangs, but that, fortunately, never happens. As far as the cast goes, LaBeouf keeps building on his leading man status in the underdog role, while Monaghan is believable and relatable as a woman who has no choice other than her child. Thornton also offers a nice turn as a patriotic FBI veteran, as does Michael Chiklis as the much-too-eager Defense Secretary.

**SPOILERS**

The only gripe I have about Eagle Eye is that its third act may have benefited from more bravery on the filmmakers' part. For some reason, The Parallax View came to mind as I was watching the tension at the end grow to a climax, making me think afterwards that a more nihilistic finale may have been more appropriate and incomparably more effective. As it is, the ending used was a rather safe option; I wonder if a darker one had ever been in play and discarded, lest the audience should feel alienated in our era of global political and terrorist hazards.

**END OF SPOILERS**

While far from a classic, Eagle Eye is more intelligent than the usual action/adventure/suspense piece. A thriller that makes its genre proud, the movie is kinetic candy at its finest, as well as a fun vehicle with a message.

8/10


In Bruges (2008) -- The domain of dark, gritty humor is a sorely neglected one; I suspect this stems from the lack of financiers' faith in turning any profit from it. However, when filmmakers are given a chance to show courage and integrity, without the burden of expecting dollar signs to start popping up, we get a well-written and unapologetic gem like Martin McDonagh's In Bruges. Two hitmen, Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson), have been ordered by their unscrupulous boss Harry (Ralph Fiennes) to hide out in the picturesque Belgian town of Bruges, after a botched job back in England. Things change for the worse when a series of events brings violently paranoid Harry to the town... The advertisements market this movie as a comedy; however, it is more of a drama with dashes of sepulchral wit, bringing to mind the surrealist beauty of Emir Kusturica's works. Farrell is incredible as Ray, who wears his emotions on his sleeve, yet also paradoxically opts for easy avenues like sarcasm and violence to help him deal with raw guilt and deep-seated depression. One is never sure why Ray has made the decisions he did, and Farrell makes us believe that sheer desperation and glamorized notions of easy money were the main reasons, ideas that were shattered in a flash. Apart from this film, Tigerland and Phone Booth, Farrell has never really got a chance to show his range; I have not seen Pride and Glory yet, but I sincerely hope he will keep getting roles that showcase his talent. Gleeson gives a touching portrayal of seasoned hitman Ken, who recognizes the bleak inhumanity of the job and the humanity in Ray, not wanting him to get lost in the merciless chaos. Fiennes is hilariously insane as Harry, sporting a pitch-perfect Cockney accent and reveling in a hypocritical moralistic code that guides the character. The setting is perfectly symbolic for this tale of death merchants on hiatus. Bruges, a town whose every whimsically picturesque corner appears to belong in another era and another world, serves as inadvertent crossroads for each of the protagonists. It makes us wonder if, in the end, they will be able to remain within its safe cocoon -- literally or figuratively -- and enjoy a redemptive ordinary life, or if they will go back to their disastrous and self-destructive ways. The movie is a cinematic choice between life and death, innocence and corruption; a question of too many wrongs and too few rights, seeing hell for the first time and looking for a way back.

10/10