Cillian Murphy, one of the leading stars of "Red Eye," called it a good B movie, not a good movie. Well, in my experience of reviewing movies, a good B movie is a good movie ("King Kong," anyone?) "Red Eye" is an exceedingly effective thriller that has equal amounts of tension and thrills right from the start. It may be a stretch from director Wes Craven's usual supernatural chillers but I did not mind that one bit.
Unease settles in during "Red Eye's" opening moments where an uppity hotel manager, Lisa (a sheerly perfect Rachel McAdams), has discovered that her flight has been delayed. She is waiting on line while one irate male passenger is ready to blow a fuse. A meek-looking guy (Cillian Murphy) settles the customer and this guy's eyes usher in malice, not kindness. Lisa is impressed and sort of charmed by him, enough to have a drink at the bar with him. You know right away that this guy is trouble and you are well aware that he is more than likely going to sit next to Lisa on that flight. What happens next? After some personal questions about Lisa's father and her recently deceased grandmother, we learn that Jackson Rippner (who on earth has a name like that?) has a flight plan that involves something vaguely terroristic and a potential political assassination. To reveal more would be foolish.
"Red Eye" stays on board the flight for almost the whole movie. It is impressive that no shot aboard the plane is ever really repeated (other than extreme close-ups of McAdams and Murphy, some cutaways to Murphy from reverse angles reveal a vaguely demonic look with his slight parted hair) and so the movie builds with its exemplary set-up knowing we are willing to go anywhere the plot goes. Once Lisa is aware of what's happening, she is trapped in her seat and has failed attempts at warning an elderly passenger holding a Dr. Phil book or using soap in the bathroom mirror to alert others. Jackson will not let Lisa out of his crosshairs.
I would have liked a little more character interaction, especially Lisa and her worrywart of a father (Brian Cox, a slight role for him). Still, "Red Eye" has confidently persuasive performances by Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy in a truly high-stakes, pulse-pounding thriller. At just one hour and nineteen minutes (that is not including the credits), Craven and his writers Carl Ellsworth and Dan Foos pack in a lot for its tight, clockwork narrative. You will come out of this movie with the feeling that your heart skipped a couple of beats."Red Eye" is proof that Wes Craven can make a lean machine of a B-movie better than anyone.
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