Top Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
A timely and disturbing portral of the remote drone war on terror. By George W. Lynn on March 21, 2016
Format: DVD
A timely and emotionally disturbing picture of the drone war against terrorism and the ultimate price of collateral damage. We are brought into a British intel operation, in coordination with the Kenyan military on the ground against the Somali terrorist organization, Al Shabbab trying to run a suicide bombing mission in Kenya, but the drone aircraft is US and the pilot and system operators are based in the U.S. All three military organizations are working in close coordination on this mission to capture two high ranking Al Shabbab British subjects and a U.S. citizen as well. The anti-terrorist mission is ultimately commanded out of London by high ranking officers and government officials. The mission's original purpose to capture and detain falls through so the various actors involved are left with a choice of taking out the terrorists with a drone strike in a civilian area and or scrubbing the mission and allowing yet another vicious bombing to proceed.
We are early on introduced to a beautiful and intelligent young Somali girl, and I doubt anyone will be surprised she will become a central part of the plot. Helen Mirrer is as always brilliant in her role as the rather ruthless British tactical commander as is Alan Rickman as her commander back in London.in what I assume was his final role. The British officers and politicians go round and round debating every nuance while the politicians keep trying to find someone else to take ultimate responsibility no matter how long the clock ticks. This contrasts starkly in the film with the US political attitude which is essentially this is a no brainer, However, the actual U.S. aircraft operators who can see every target's face up close and personal find the prospect emotionally overwhelming.
All of the actors, including the girl and her family along with the Kenyan intel team, do a great job in their roles. The film does a very fine job in building mounting frustration and tension as we get closer to decision time and it's probable ultimate price. We get also some very interesting looks at drone surveillance technolgy including two micro drones, one a bird and another a beetle. not sure if those are actually in production just yet or only in development. In any case, the film is well worth watching and certainly very timely in its portrayal of the drone war against terror and the dilemmas it presents in terms of the price of action vs. inaction. The only real question is why it has taken this long to come up with such a powerful story.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Involving, Exhausting and Brilliant By Jay B. Lane TOP 1000 REVIEWER on March 19, 2016
Format: DVD
Writers are evil. They give us impossible situations and expect us to stick around til the end. One of our favorite women of a certain age: Helen Mirren plays a military officer calling the shots as a drone attack directive escalates from "Capture" to "Kill" when they spot suicide bombers. Suddenly a little girl wanders into the kill zone. Shoot? Don't Shoot? Mirren's character has been tracking this terrorist for years; she does NOT want to give up now!
Director Gavin Hood brings us another action-filled nail-biter, this time about modern warfare where the trigger man is a continent away from his target. In fact decisions are made from England, Nevada, Nairobi, Pearl Harbor, Beijing and Singapore. Screenwriter Guy Hibbert knows just how to jangle our nerves and question our sense of decency and fair play. We also see a massive sampling of modern hi-tech weaponry and communications.
Here's part of the cast:
* Helen Mirren ("RED") Colonel Katherine Powell has to make the call, but now that the directive has changed, the Rules of Engagement force her to seek additional permission.
* Alan Rickman ("Harry Potter") Lieutenant General Frank Benson is willing to back her if and when that "committee" at his command post can agree. He tells one of them, "Don't ever tell a soldier he doesn't understand war."
* Aaron Paul ("Breaking Bad") American drone pilot Steve Watts has the target in his sights... He has his orders. He understands the issues. Now what?
* Barkhad Abdi ("Captain Phillips") Agent Jama Farah is doing his very best to help our heroes with his skills on the ground, but there is that hardworking little girl...
* Jeremy Northam (Lots of TV) Brian Woodale is only one of many who won't make the call. Instead, questions are "kicked upstairs" in this alphabet soup of international warfare, moral quandaries and decision making.
* Monica Dolan (Lots of TV) Angela Northman insists the propaganda would be worse for the Allies if they kill one nine-year-old girl than it would be if al-Qaeda kills 60 civilians with two suicide bombers whom the Allies had allowed to escape.
Just when we think we know what we would do in the same circumstances, moral and ethical quandaries become messier: One life versus many lives. There is NO right answer and everyone pleads his or her case so eloquently we find ourselves in agreement, until... This is involving, exhausting and brilliant!
If you question the ending, it was ever thus: In war, truth is the first casualty - Aeschylus
5.0 out of 5 stars
Eye in the Sky quick movie review By J. Daniel Spratlin on March 23, 2016
Format: DVD
What’s it about?
A drone-led terrorist capture mission in Kenya takes an unexpected turn, throwing up an intriguing ethical dilemma for all those involved. In one of his last roles, Alan Rickman plays a typically cynical general, with Captain Phillips’ Barked Abdi in a pivotal on-the-ground role.
What did I think?
This extraordinarily-gripping thriller keeps you guessing and mulling all the way, as you see through the eyes of the frankly bizarre world of modern remote warfare, tiny beetle drones and all. Superb performances from a global cast and an excellent script combine to make this a winner that’ll leave your cogs turning long after you leave the theater.
It’s got Helen Mirren and Alan Rickman in it. That should tell you all you need to know.
2.0 out of 5 stars
Lots of good English acting, very little historical context By Seisachtheia58 on March 25, 2016
Format: Blu-ray
Movie-making is the banker's art form, and this film is a brilliant illustration of that. Brilliant in the sense that the success of Eye in the Sky as Hitchcock-inspired "entertainment" guarantees that Anglo-American attitudes toward the war on terror will be unaffected by this film.
In fact, insofar as Eye in the Sky pricks our consciences, we can now feel we've atoned for the many sins of our banker-controlled military occupation of the world, and relax again about the whole thing. "My complicity is erased, because I sat through a two hours of penance." Back to my real life now...
That's the way the fig leaf of Western morality works. Forget the history of Western economic exploitation that creates the Nairobi's of the world, and the "suicide bombers" that epitomize Western demonology. Pray tell me, what political options are there for a people trapped in the poverty and squalor of the urban south?
The fact that we've gone from a complex film like Battle of Algiers to this popcorn movie in a short 50 years tells us all we need to know about the direction history is taking--we can expect perpetual drone warfare for the foreseeable future.
The two stars are for the devastating performance of Aaron Paul, at least the part where he bares his humanity for just a minute.
All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt. (Charles M. Schulz)
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