Eagle Eye (2008)

Directed by DJ Caruso (Distrubia, Two for the Money)

Starring Shia Lebeouf, Michelle Monaghan, Billy Bob Thorton, Michael Chiklis, Rosario Dawson, William Sadler (the bad guy from Die Harder)

Synopsis: “Jerry and Rachel are two strangers thrown together by a mysterious phone call from a woman they have never met. Threatening their lives and family, she pushes Jerry and Rachel into a series of increasingly dangerous situations, using the technology of everyday life to track and control their every move.”

I thought this was a fun movie to watch. People complain about the story not being “believable,” and I do understand the argument since it’s not the most intelligent story. I, for one, enojyed the movie. I really thought the movie did a good job of establishing the world in which the story takes placem, then playing by the rules of that world to tell that story in a fun and exciting way. It certainly kept me entertained throughout (in an Enemy of the State-kind of way).

7/10

The Cotton Club (1984)

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

Starring Richard Gere, Gregory Hines, Diane Lane, Bob (J.Edgar Hoover in Nixon) Hoskins, Fred “Herman Munster” Gwynne, Nicholas Cage, Laurence Fishburne

Synopsis: “The Cotton Club was a famous night club in Harlem. The story follows the people that visited the club, those that ran it, and is peppered with the Jazz music that made it so famous.”

I thought it was weird that I had never heard of this movie before it popped up on the instant download option. When I looked into it, the movie apparently had a very tumultuous production from which numberous rumours flowed that over-shadowed the  film itself, when it was eventually released. Personally… I don’t know if it’s the fact that I don’t care for Richard Gere… but, aside from a brilliantly acted and directed scene between Bob Hoskins and Fred Gwynne, I wasn’t crazy about the movie. There are definitely a lot of interesting ideas and themes explored, but I wouldn’t really recommend this one.

5.5/10