[Ralph Potts]



The Review at a Glance: (max score: 5 )

Film:

Extras:

Audio/Video total rating:

( Max score: 100 )

87






Studio and Year: DreamWorks - 2008
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Feature running time: 117 Minutes
Genre: Thriller/Action

Disc Format: BD-50
Encoding: AVC (MPEG-4)
Video Aspect: 2.35:1
Resolution: 1080p/24


Audio Format(s): English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, French/Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Michelle Monighan, Billy Bob Thornton, Rosario Dawson, Michael Chicklis, Anthony Mackie
Directed by: DJ Caruso
Music by: Brian Tyler
Written by: John Glenn, Travis Adam Wright, Hilary Seitz, Dan McDermott
Region Code: A

Blu-ray Disc release Date: December 28, 2008







"If you want to live you will obey"



Film Synopsis:


Executive Producer Steven Spielberg delivers the ultimate race-against-time thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat! Shia LaBeouf (Transformers) and Michelle Monaghan (Mission: Impossible III) star as strangers ripped from their ordinary lives when they are “activated” as part or a high-tech assassination plot. Through blistering chases and shocking twists they try to escape – but where do you go when the enemy is everywhere?



My Take:

When I first saw the trailer for this movie I was intrigued. It looked like a thriller with excellent potential and solid casting. I saw it theatrically when it came out in September. Its pacing in the first half is very good as it makes some quick introductions and throws you right into the mix. I loved how the “voice” kept one step ahead and never let up on Rachel and Jerry (Monighan and LaBeouf). There was no quarter shown for those who failed to follow instructions. The mystery as to why they had been selected and exactly what was transpiring kept interest high. The problem begins once things begin to come into focus and the mystery is revealed. I will say that it explained a lot about how the “voice” kept on top of them and facilitated their mission. I just felt the reason for needing Jerry wasn’t inventive and the why regarding the assassination plot felt very much the same. Based upon what they were up against with I would imagine that a much better fail safe would never have allowed it. I enjoyed the action based sequences, especially the chapter 8 car chase. I thought that LaBeouf and Monighan complimented one another onscreen which is always good. Rosario Dawson and Billy Bob Thornton were both believable in their supporting roles and I thought the camera work and stunts were excellent. Eagle eye can be best enjoyed if you remove your thinking cap and just site back and enjoy the ride. I can assure you that the first half will provide plenty of entertainment and while the second act isn‘t as strong I wouldn‘t say that it completely negates the experience as a whole.








Parental Guide:


The rating is for intense sequences of action, violence and for language.





AUDIO/VIDEO - By The Numbers:
REFERENCE = 92-100 / EXCELLENT = 83-91 / GOOD = 74-82 / AVERAGE = 65-73 / BELOW AVERAGE = under 65

**My audio/video ratings are based upon a comparative made against other high definition media/blu-ray disc.**


(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)


Audio: 86

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• Dynamics:
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• Surround Sound presentation:
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• Clarity/Detail:
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• Dialogue Reproduction:
  
  

Video: 88


(Each rating is worth 4 points with a max of 5 per category)

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• Resolution/Clarity:
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• Black level/Shadow detail:
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• Color reproduction:
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• Fleshtones:
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• Compression:

Eagle Eye comes to Blu-ray Disc from Paramount/DreamWorks featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 29 mbps and lossless Dolby TrueHD 5.1 channel audio that has an average bitrate of 3.8 mbps.

This video presentation pretty much mirrored what I saw in the theater and looked excellent. Images exhibited high level detail with resolute sharpness and three dimensional depth. This translated into crisply defined video that brought plenty of subtle minutia in the faces, clothing and small objects onscreen. Making out the texture and structure of buildings, landscapes, and objects in backgrounds during wide angle camera pans wasn’t a problem. Filtering is applied which gives the film a cooler color overtone. The palette is more reserved in tonality and colors come across looking less vibrant but never drab. Skin tones were affected by this and lacked defining tonal delineation but it wasn’t to the point if appearing unnatural. Blacks were noise free with velvety depth and excellent dynamic range. Detail in low lighting and dark sequences was never a problem as they had appreciable depth of field. The video had a pristine quality that seemed discernible regardless of the camera’s perspective. The Dolby TrueHD soundtrack was highlighted by opulent dynamic range, punchy bass, and definitive high resolution clarity. Dialogue had excellent room penetration, texture, and definition through the center channel. Information mixed to the front three channels was well balanced as it created a cohesive soundstage that was clearly intelligible with notable separation and depth. The surrounds weren’t heavily engaged throughout the presentation however their use was frequent and at times titillating to the senses. The car chase in chapter 8 and the tunnel chase in the third act are good examples. These sequences sounded great as it created a busy sound field filled with immersive directional activity that emanated from all directions. Bass response was quite good as it accentuated impact and explosive elements within the sound mix. Overall this was great home theater presentation that I found to be very close to theatrical experience.






Bonus Features:

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• (HD) 3 Deleted scenes and an alternate ending
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• (HD) Asymmetrical warfare: Making of Eagle eye
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• (HD) Eagle eye on location: Washington DC
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• (HD) Is my cell phone spying on me?
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• (HD) Shall we play a game?
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• (HD) Road trip
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• (HD) Gag reel
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• Photo gallery
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• (HD) Theatrical trailer

Final Thoughts:


Eagle Eye is an above average thriller that starts out strong but begins to wane going into the final act. I still found that I enjoyed it on this re-visit. Paramount/DreamWorks has brought it to high definition Blu-ray Disc is an excellent package that features great sound and video quality. The bonus features are just average but are offered in high definition. If you haven’t already seen this film I would recommend a rental before purchase but don’t be surprised if it ends up finding a place in your collection.

Ralph Potts
AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews





Reference Review System:



JVC DLA-RS20 1080p High Definition Front Projector

Carada Precision Brilliant White 96" Screen

Oppo 970HD universal disc DVD Player (480i HDMI)

Toshiba HD-XA2 HD DVD Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Panasonic DMP-BD55K Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Sony Playstation 3 Blu-ray disc Player (HDMI Audio/Video)

Marantz DV7001 Universal Disc Player

Denon AVR 5308CI THX Ultra 2 Preamp/Video Processor

B&K Reference 200.7 Series 2 seven Channel amplifier

Philips TSU9400 Pro Series Touch Panel Remote Control

Canton "Ergo" Series speakers

Axiom Audio QS8 Quadpolar speakers

SV Sound PB-13 Ultra (Rosenut finish)

APC AV S15BLK Power Conditioner/Surge Protector

Furman SPR-20i Stable Power Regulator

Wireworld, VizionWare, Audioquest, Best Deal Cables - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling

Cool Components - CP-CP102 cooling package

 

[muffinmcfluffin]

I saw a pre-screening of this movie, and it kind of sucked.


I won't be suckered into buying this one. Thankfully it's only an 87 of a review.

 

[yadfgp]

This was 1 of the best movies I've seen in a long time overall. Ralph's review is pretty accurate for the quality of the movie I think. The overall video presentation I didn't quite agree with. It looked very good, but I thought it seemed a tad grainy and slightly dull overall. Kind of like it had a very thin film like substance over it. Wasn't quite eye popping like what you might expect from a blu ray movie of this magnitude. The audio was very good overall.

 

[DacHawk]

Good idea for a film. The acting is poor. Still, somewhat entertaining.

 

[Djoel]

I was trying watch this last night at a friends house in SD, and all I could think is how can I make this flick into a drinking game, the plot was all over the place, and the writers kept on piling it on with crap after crap. Hey maybe I'm stupid, and just didn't get it.

I do have to agree, some of the action sequence was pretty cool, but some seemed recycle. What ever, I'm sure may will enjoy it.


Djoel

 

[DavidEC]

I did not fully understand the movie till the end.

Then it really blow me away and fully enjoyed the movie on the second watching!

Watch the extra "Shall we play a game?".

Watch this 'extra' then watch the movie again....


Just wished that their was a commentary track!


--David

 

[twilight47]

This was a decent movie was an excellent plot. I enjoyed it from start to finish.

 

[Hksvr4]

Alot of hype, good thing I rented before I purchased. Movie was good in the beginning, kind of slow towards the end. To those bass lovers, the "eye" will not disappoint.

 

[Jack Gilvey]

Ahh, what the heck...added to queue.

 

[Ralph Potts]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Jack Gilvey /forum/post/15404091


Ahh, what the heck...added to queue.

Greetings,


Jack, be sure to post back with your impressions..

Cheers,

 

[Goatse]

This movie had so much potential to be a great flick. Once the power line fell on that guy, the film went down hill.

 

[disguy]

To me, it was like I,Robot meets Enemy of the State with a twist (kind of a lame one, imo).

 

[Dave Vaughn]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Goatse /forum/post/15408292


This movie had so much potential to be a great flick. Once the power line fell on that guy, the film went down hill.

Agreed...but a decent "check your brain at the door" type of movie. At least it wasn't boring, right?

 

[davcole]

Wow, loved it!!


I had no expectation of the film and I do not count myself as a Shia fan, however there was enough inventiveness in the film I can appreciate. "Big Brother" was explored so well in a film like ENEMY OF THE STATE, however this takes "Big Brother" and makes him all the more ominous. Despite the insaneness of the plot developments, in today's world it doesn't seem all that inplausable.


While I'll never claim to be a fan of the overprocessed look of films today, this is a solid transfer from Paramount. Very sharp, lots of detail and for the colors presented in the film very solid. I didn't notice any anomolies that stick out.


As for the audio, a very solid mix. While it does have good bass extension, I expected a bit more, however the film has a very active mix and the Truehd reproduces it very cleanly. All in all a pretty excellent track.


I guess i'm suprised how much I did like the film. Glad I checked it out!

 

[Black Max]

My wife and I selected this movie as our New Years Eve flick. We were both pleasantly surprised at how entertaining it was. It was definitely worth the rental from Netflix.

 

[robertc88]

Starts out strong and dies a bit IMHO and I believe Ralph stated as much. All and all a good rental but I don't think I'm going to purchase it. PQ and AQ were very good, nothing that distracted me per se and only added to the viewing pleasure.

 

[Desert Pilot]

I tried to like this film. But, I just couldn't. In my opinion, so much was happening that simply could not happen. The police, of course, were completely incapable of stopping the car chase scenes. The super computer was controlling items that simply are not networked and could not be remotely controlled. And, of course, we have two fairly young people somehow rise to the occasion and do everything perfect, even though neither one has any training, to save the day.


We rented it. So it's worth the rental charge.


marcus

 

[AvGeek07]

If your're a action nut like i'am,then it's a must to ad to your collections.

I must say,this is a first movie i saw in blu-ray. the,dolby true hd was amazing clear sound from all my speakers. I have to agree,the acting was terrible but still a good action flick. I say,either rent or buy. just my two cents of words.

 

[hitchfan]

I thought it was a mish-mash of Hitchcockian homages minus most of the wit, characterization and suspense. Spielberg has said that he wanted the otherwise benign cellphone call to convey the same foreboding and danger as birds in The Birds. But it didn't stop there.


There was the 39 Steps (an unlikely couple linked together in a race to discover a secret) complete with them "play acting" other roles. We had our North By Northwest style incongruous scene of dispassionate threat and death in a wide open rustic, uniquely American-looking setting, chaos and insecurity at iconic locations of national security and order. A version of the climactc scene in The Man Who Knew Too Much where a main character must choose between saving a life by rudely disrupting a formal presentation or allow the killing to occur by remaining silent. And more.


After Disturbia (Rear Window), it appears modern filmmakers have decided Shia LaBeouf is right for the "everyman" range of roles James Stewart and Cary Grant played for an earlier generation.


Hmm...thankfully, we still have those earlier movies to return to every now and then as a reminder of how better filmmakers did it...better.

 

[Dave Vaughn]



Quote:
Originally Posted by hitchfan /forum/post/15440251


I thought it was a mish-mash of Hitchcockian homages minus most of the wit, characterization and suspense. Spielberg has said that he wanted the otherwise benign cellphone call to convey the same foreboding and danger as birds in The Birds. But it didn't stop there.


There was the 39 Steps (an unlikely couple linked together in a race to discover a secret) complete with them "play acting" other roles. We had our North By Northwest style incongruous scene of dispassionate threat and death in a wide open rustic, uniquely American-looking setting, chaos and insecurity at iconic locations of national security and order. A version of the climactc scene in The Man Who Knew Too Much where a main character must choose between saving a life by rudely disrupting a formal presentation or allow the killing to occur by remaining silent. And more.


After Disturbia (Rear Window), it appears modern filmmakers have decided Shia LaBeouf is right for the "everyman" range of roles James Stewart and Cary Grant played for an earlier generation.


Hmm...thankfully, we still have those earlier movies to return to every now and then as a reminder of how better filmmakers did it...better.

I personally think Shia LaBeouf is WAY overrated as an actor. I enjoyed him in "Disturbia," but he hasn't broken any new ground since then at all. He plays the same part every time. Granted, there aren't many in Hollywood who play different parts with the exception of Hanks, Crowe, & Penn just to name three.


As for the filmmakers, I completely agree. But if we look back, Hollywood has always produced a bunch of crap, and every now and then a great film gets produced and we remember it fondly. How many "great" films were made in 2008? Five possibly, and it may not even be that high. Sure, there were entertaining films (which I consider this to be), but very few films that are worth thinking about an hour after you eject the disc.