Jerry Shaw (Shia LaBeouf) is dealing with the death of his twin when he finds his apartment filled with planted illegal evidence. This is accompanied by a phone call that tells him to leave. When he doesn’t and is arrested, the same voice calls again and orchestrates his escape.

Thus trapped, Jerry is forced into a car with Rachel (Michelle Monaghan), who has had her son threatened by the same caller. For three days, the two are forced to follow the instructions of the person on the other end of the line as part of an assassination plot.

CRITIQUE

Political thrillers have been a popular genre since a number of memorable ones appeared in the 1970’s. They often feature technology as an essential element in the narrative and this film is the latest example of that. Eagle Eye is a thriller that is truly exciting in many ways, despite a plot that is a bit too formulaic.

An opening sequence of a military operation without the desired outcome serves as a sort-of prologue to the main plot, and it is a nice dose of gravitas to balance all the action to come. Plus, Michael Chiklis is here! A few scenes establishing Jerry’s character are well spent, with Shia LaBeouf charming the lens off the camera, as he usually does. He also turns in impressive dramatic acting in the next set of scenes, in which his character learns of his twin’s death and attends the funeral.

Then the meat of the plot kicks in. When the first phone call comes, the audience is tempted to think that this film is going to be exactly like the countless other conspiracy films we’ve all seen. But soon, the true scope of what that voice on the other end of the line can control becomes apparent and the viewer is fully engaged.

While the investigation following Jerry and Rachel and all of the action moments (though quite effective) feel like any other film most of the time, the revelation of where the calls are coming from and what the motivation behind them is makes a positive impression.

Yes, the idea of a supercomputer gaining a mind of its own (artificial intelligence) and threatening lives has been explored before, most famously in 2001: A Space Odyssey, but the filmmaking team here has made an effort to make the production design effective (a creepy wall of golden orbs and a roving red eye) and, more importantly, allow viewers access to the computer’s reasoning of its actions. What the computer’s A.I. wants to accomplish is based on extremely literal interpretations of the Constitution, which has the potential to spark discussion after the film has ended. That’s not something that can always be said of an action movie.

Furthermore, the film’s ending is well thought out, which is also not always the case. Many viewers will probably like that there is no contrived romance between Jerry and Rachel; the final scene hints very subtly that it might happen, but it doesn’t feel forced.

Touches of freshness amid action that is mostly exciting are what set Eagle Eye apart in its genre.

THE VIDEO

Eagle Eye is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. The transfer is typically excellent, with no glitches. This is especially important for a film in which a lot of reading text on the screen takes place. Optional subtitles are available in English, Spanish and French.

THE AUDIO

Eagle Eye is presented in English 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround. Audio quality is near excellent, with crisp front center action and the surrounds effectively handling the action scenes.  Also featured are French and Spanish dub tracks in the 5.1 DD format.

THE EXTRAS

Eagle Eye arrives on DVD in a two-disc set with the majority of the bonus material on the second disc.

Deleted Scenes: There are three included here and they are all quite short. They are extended versions of scenes that are actually in the film, and the best is the longer conversation between Jerry and Rachel about twins.

Road Trip: On Location with the Cast and Crew: This is a very brief doc that includes interviews from cast, director, and crew, as well as on-set footage. The focus is the location work- the central comment from everyone mentions how the production moved around a lot, utilizing many different locations.

Alternate Ending: This version of the end of the film adds a brief scene after the scene that ends the final cut of the film. Rachel’s son Sam is playing a rock band video game with his friends and words appear on the screen, talking to him. I personally feel that not using this ending was a good choice. It is too much of a trick ending, one too indicative of a sequel.

Asymmetrical Warfare: The Making of Eagle Eye: A half-hour doc of behind-the-scenes footage and interviews makes up this extra and it is consistently interesting and informative. There are in-depth explanations of how a couple of the action sequences were achieved, as well as good discussions of things like the production design for the computer of the title and how the overall look of the film was influenced by ‘70s realistic thrillers. LaBeouf’s praise of Monaghan’s ability to perform stunts in 4-inch stiletto heels (why an actress who is 5’7” needs those, I’ll never know!) is cool, too.

Eagle Eye on Location: Washington, D.C.: The locations used in the film in our nation’s capitol are the focus of this featurette. The Library of Congress and the exterior of the Pentagon are discussed in particular detail. There is some excellent information here, so this is definitely worth watching.

Is My Cell Phone Spying on Me?: This is a brief but good extra with interviews discussing the reality of the premise of this film- how technology has invaded every second of our lives and has put our privacy in jeopardy. The interviews here are from experts in the field and cast members we haven’t really heard from in other extras.

Shall We Play a Game?: Director Caruso sits down with his mentor, director John Badham, to talk about various topics connected with this film. Aside from the general director challenges they talk about, it is quite interesting how they point out parallels between this film and Badham’s WarGames. Particularly fascinating is the idea of playback in their films, which involves material actually playing on a screen to then be filmed as part of the scene. The example Badham gives of this from WarGames is amazing. This extra is definitely one that adds value to this set.

Gag Reel: At about 7 minutes long, this reel is quite funny, though there does seem to be the usual overabundance of cursing. The typical line flubs and on-set laughter are mostly what can be found here.

Photo Gallery: These are a series of production stills and behind-the-scenes photos. They’re cool to take a look at once.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The formulaic bits of Eagle Eye’s plot aside, there is a terrific cast and an above-average script to entertain viewers of the film. It is also not lacking for exciting action sequences. An excellent array of extra features on this 2-disc set adds incentive to give this set a purchasing option.