↓
 
Home→New Essays→RED EYE/ FILM

RED EYE/ FILM

56thst.com Posted on by
Wikipedia
The Free Encyclopedia

Search

Contents

hide

Red Eye (2005 American film)

Tools

Appearancehide

Text

  • SmallStandardLarge

Width

  • StandardWide

Color (beta)

  • AutomaticLightDark

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Red Eye
Theatrical release poster
Directed byWes Craven
Screenplay byCarl Ellsworth
Story byCarl EllsworthDan Foos
Produced byChris BenderMarianne Maddalena
StarringRachel McAdamsCillian MurphyBrian Cox
CinematographyRobert Yeoman
Edited byPatrick LussierStuart Levy
Music byMarco Beltrami
Production
companies		DreamWorks PicturesBenderSpinkCraven-Maddalena Films
Distributed byDreamWorks Pictures
Release dateAugust 19, 2005
Running time85 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguagesEnglishRussian
Budget$26 million[2]
Box office$96.2 million[2]

Red Eye is a 2005 American psychological thriller film directed by Wes Craven and written by Carl Ellsworth, based on a story by Ellsworth and Dan Foos. It stars Rachel McAdams, Cillian Murphy, and Brian Cox. The story follows a hotel manager ensnared in an assassination plot by a terrorist while aboard a red-eye flight to Miami.

The film score was composed and conducted by Marco Beltrami. It was distributed by DreamWorks Pictures and released on August 19, 2005.

The film received positive reviews. An extended version of the film, which added previously unused footage to increase the running time, was broadcast on the ABC television network several times.

Plot

After attending her grandmother’s funeral, Lisa Reisert arrives at Dallas Love Field to take a red-eye flight back to Miami, Florida. She meets a handsome young man named Jackson Rippner, also traveling to Miami. While waiting to board her flight, they share a drink at the airport bar and engage in small talk.

To her surprise, Lisa finds Jackson seated beside her on the flight. After takeoff, his charming demeanor quickly turns sinister as he informs Lisa that he works for a domestic terrorist organization planning to assassinate Charles Keefe, the current United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security. Lisa’s managerial position at the Lux Atlantic Hotel in Miami, where Keefe and his family are staying, is crucial to their plot.

Jackson orders Lisa to call the hotel and have the Keefe family moved from their regular suite to one where a missile launched from a boat in the harbor will strike. Otherwise, her father, Joe, will be killed. Lisa makes several attempts to delay making the call and get help, going as far as writing a fake bomb threat in the bathroom. However, a combination of bad luck and Jackson’s vigilance thwarts all her efforts.

Eventually, Lisa calls her co-worker, Cynthia, and has the Keefe family moved to the targeted suite. Jackson refuses to call off the hitman waiting outside Joe’s house until the assassination is confirmed.

As the plane lands at Miami International Airport, Lisa reveals she was attacked and raped at knifepoint two years earlier and vows it will never happen again. She stabs Jackson in the throat with a ballpoint pen, grabs his phone, and flees the plane.

Once outside, Lisa, chased by Jackson, makes her way to the airport exit and steals an unattended SUV. She calls Cynthia and says to evacuate the hotel. Cynthia, the Keefes, and U.S. Secret Service agents vacate the suite seconds before a missile destroys it and damages the hotel’s upper floors.

The cell phone’s battery dies as Lisa calls her father, so she rushes to his house. She hits and kills the hitman with the car as he shoots at her, crashing into the front door. Joe is unharmed and has called 9-1-1.

Jackson arrives and incapacitates Joe, then pursues Lisa throughout the house. As they struggle, he throws her down the staircase. Lisa retrieves the dead hitman’s gun and shoots Jackson. Though wounded, he disarms Lisa and is about to kill her when the revived Joe, finds the gun and shoots Jackson. Lisa returns to the hotel to provide assistance. Keefe praises both women for saving his and his family’s life.

Cast

Production

In March 2004, it was announced DreamWorks Pictures had purchased Red Eye, a script written by Carl Ellsworth described by trades as Phone Booth on a plane.[3] In August of that year, it was announced Wes Craven had signed on to direct Red Eye.[4] Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy were cast as the film’s leads that September, with Craven noting Murphy’s enthusiasm for the role as he flew in for a meeting two days before his wedding.[5]

Reception

Box office

Red Eye opened theatrically on August 19, 2005, in 3,079 venues, earning $16,167,662 in its opening weekend, ranking second in the domestic box office behind The 40-Year-Old Virgin ($21,422,815).[6] At the end of its run, eight weeks later (on October 13), the film grossed $57,891,803 in the United States and Canada, and $37,685,971 overseas for a worldwide total of $95,577,774. The film had a $26-million budget.[2]

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, Red Eye holds an approval rating of 80%, with an average score of 6.7/10 based on 194 reviews. The website’s critical consensus reads, “With solid performances and tight direction from Wes Craven, Red Eye is a brisk, economic thriller.”[7] On Metacritic, the film received a weighted score of 71 out of 100, based on 36 reviews, indicating “generally favorable reviews”.[8] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of B on an A+ to F scale.[9]

Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film 3.5/4 stars calling it the “best thriller of summer 2005”, and a “gripping suspense [that] will pin you to your seat”.[10]

Roger Ebert commended the film, calling it a “good thriller” that moves “competently [and] relentlessly”. He praised Craven for making the film “function so smoothly” and “doing exactly what it was intended to do”. Ebert also expressed admiration for the performances of McAdams and Murphy, stating that they are “very effective together”. He said that McAdams is “so convincing because she keeps [her performance] at ground level” and “she remains plausible even when the action ratchets up around her”. He complimented Murphy for his “ability to modulate his character instead of gnashing the scenery”. He gave the film 3/4 stars.[11]

Manohla Dargis of The New York Times called the film a “nifty, tense thriller” and said that the casting of the two leads is “a nice surprise”. She said that Murphy is “a picture-perfect villain” and McAdams has a “depth of intensity” that is uncommon.[12]

USA Today film critic Claudia Puig said the film is “fun to watch because of the strong performances”. She praised McAdams for blending “vulnerability and courage” into her performance and called Murphy “menacing”. While she mentioned that the film is “tense, smart, and nerve-wracking” and “entertaining and scary” on the first hour, she criticizes the film for going “downhill” and becoming a “by-the-book action flick”.[13]

Variety‘s Robert Koehler stated that “Red Eye relies on hoodwinking an audience with its tension, so that the sheer illogic of the conspiracy plot can slip by without detection” but complimented McAdams for finding “new and interesting ways of silently projecting fear”.[14]

Wesley Morris of The Boston Globe felt the film was like a “poor cousin of an episode of 24. Call it 12.”[15]

In October 2006, the film ranked 25th in the 30 Even Scarier Movie Moments, a follow-up to Bravo‘s The 100 Scariest Movie Moments, which was aired in October 2004.

In 2021, Cillian Murphy said, “I remember when I saw it, [I] was like ‘Oh, that’s kind of a schlocky B movie. Rachel McAdams is excellent in it.’ But I didn’t think I gave a very nuanced performance in it. But, listen, if people love the movie then that’s great. I’m pleased with that.”[16] In 2024, he recalled that Red Eye is not among his favorites: “I love Rachel McAdams and we had fun making it but I don’t think it’s a good movie. It’s a good B movie.”[17][18]

Awards and nominations

Awards
AwardCategoryNameOutcome
Golden Trailer AwardsBest ThrillerNominated
Irish Film and Television AwardsBest Actor in a Feature FilmCillian MurphyNominated
MTV Movie AwardsBest PerformanceRachel McAdamsNominated
Saturn AwardsBest Action/Adventure/Thriller FilmNominated
Best ActressRachel McAdamsNominated
Best Supporting ActorCillian MurphyNominated
Teen Choice AwardsChoice ThrillerWon
Choice ScreamRachel McAdamsNominated
Choice VillainCillian MurphyNominated

See also

References

  1.  “RED EYE (12A)”. British Board of Film Classification. August 10, 2005. Archived from the original on November 27, 2015. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
  2.  “Red Eye (2005)”. Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. October 14, 2005. Archived from the original on October 20, 2025. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
  3.  LaPorte, Nicole (March 18, 2004). “DreamWorks seeing ‘Red'”. Variety. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  4.  LaPorte, Nicole (August 9, 2004). “Craven’s booking ‘Red Eye'”. Variety. Archived from the original on December 27, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  5.  LaPorte, Nicole (September 1, 2004). “Thesps see ‘Red’ on Craven pic”. Variety. Archived from the original on December 27, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  6.  “Weekend Box Office Results for August 19-21, 2005”. Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. August 22, 2005. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved November 26, 2015.
  7.  Red Eye Movie Reviews, Pictures Archived October 20, 2025, at the Wayback Machine. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
  8.  Red Eye Reviews, Ratings, Credits Archived August 2, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Metacritic Retrieved November 23, 2010.
  9.  “Find CinemaScore” (Type “Red Eye” in the search box). CinemaScore. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  10.  Travers, Peter (August 19, 2005). “Red Eye”. Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 14, 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  11.  “Red Eye movie review & film summary (2005) | Roger Ebert”.
  12.  Dargis, Manohla (August 19, 2005). “Sticking Out a Tense Flight With a Terrorist as Seatmate”. The New York Times. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  13.  Puig, Claudia. “‘Red Eye’ just creeps right along”. USA Today. Archived from the original on February 28, 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  14.  Koehler, Robert (August 14, 2005). “Review: ‘Red Eye'”. Variety. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  15.  Morris, Wesley. “Improbable ‘Red Eye’ never gets off the ground”. Boston Globe. Archived from the original on August 22, 2015. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
  16.  “Cillian Murphy on ‘A Quiet Place Part II’ and Your Love for ‘Red Eye'”. May 26, 2021.
  17.  “‘Oppenheimer’ Star Cillian Murphy Says Hollywood Film Press Tours Are A “Broken Model”: “Everybody is So Bored””. February 14, 2024. Archived from the original on February 14, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  18.  “Cillian Murphy is the Man of the Moment”. February 13, 2024. Archived from the original on February 14, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2024.

Wikiquote has quotations related to Red Eye (2005 American film).

vteFilms directed by Wes Craven
FilmographyAwards and nominations
Feature filmsThe Last House on the Left (1972)The Hills Have Eyes (1977)Deadly Blessing (1981)Swamp Thing (1982)A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)The Hills Have Eyes Part II (1985)Deadly Friend (1986)The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988)Shocker (1989)The People Under the Stairs (1991)Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994)Vampire in Brooklyn (1995)Scream (1996)Scream 2 (1997)Music of the Heart (1999)Scream 3 (2000)Cursed (2005)Red Eye (2005)Paris, je t’aime (segment Père-Lachaise, 2006)My Soul to Take (2010)Scream 4 (2011)
Television filmsStranger in Our House (1978)Invitation to Hell (1984)Chiller (1985)Night Visions (1990)

Categories: 

Posted in New Essays permalink

About joelsnell99

Who's Who in all U.S and U.K. Honoraries (Marquis) Numerous publications in over 80 venues DANA SPIRIT AWARD/2009 Oxford Roundtable, Editor of FOCUS, a student Social Science Journal Author Snell Life Cycle Lonliness Curve Professor Emeritus - Kirkwood College Omicron Delta Kappa Grants Online Editor for Psychology and Education.com Research Fellow - Arlington Institute Outstanding Teacher at Kirkwood College Membership in numerous editorial boards or a reviewer of manuscripts Associate Editor - Psychology and Education Co-Author of Snell-Green Professor Index Author of Snell Educator Effectiveness Index Contributer to FutureEdition.com Co-Author of Snell-Allen Medical Rank Index Fellow in Kennedy Foundation Co-Author of Snell-Allen Subjective Assessment Sex Role Index Honors >>> Positions and Courses Taught >>> joelsnell@hotmail.com http://www.socialvibes.net Research Council, Advisory Board

Comments are closed.

↑