Now Over 5500 Reviews and (near) Daily Updates!

WELCOME! Use the search engines on this site (or your own off-site engine of choice) to gain easy access to the complete MAKSQUIBS Archive; more than 5500 posts and counting. (New posts added every day or so.)

You can check on all our titles by typing the Title, Director, Actor or 'Keyword' you're looking for in the Search Engine of your choice (include the phrase MAKSQUIBS) or just use the BLOGSPOT.com Search Box at the top left corner of the page.

Feel free to place comments directly on any of the film posts and to test your film knowledge with the CONTESTS scattered here & there. (Hey! No Googling allowed. They're pretty easy.)

Send E-mails to MAKSQUIBS@yahoo.com . (Let us know if the TRANSLATE WIDGET works!) Or use the Profile Page or Comments link for contact.

Thanks for stopping by.

Saturday, August 20, 2016

EYE IN THE SKY (2015)

Something of a throwback to what used to be called a ‘thinking man’s’ thriller (gender-neutral replacement term, anyone?) about the ways, means & morals of modern anti-terrorist drone warfare. There’s a ‘60s feel to Gavin Hood’s film, very Sidney Lumet, only past suspense tactics (like will we hit the target!) have gone by the wayside. The titular ‘eyes in the skies’ make that nearly a given. In its place, new obstacles like conflicting multi-national rules-of-engagement, or signing off on possible collateral damage to innocent civilians. And because most decisions happen in video-enabled war rooms with political appointees weighing in, or at bunkers halfway ‘round the world staffed by military joystick jockeys, war philosophy as well war mechanics fall askew between the abstract and the concrete. Or do except for some old-fashioned, and extremely well-played, on-site fast-thinking heroics by a local field-agent/fighter, superbly played by Barkhad Abdi. Everyone else is equally fine, with Helen Mirren, Jeremy Northam & Alan Rickman (in one of his final perfs) standouts. Only an overly emotional response by trigger operators Aaron Paul & Phoebe Fox (a Debra Winger clone) ring false. Not that they wouldn’t be shaken by events, but that the jitters would likely kick in at some random post-event moment. But this is nit-picking on a tight, tense 90+ minutes, which also functions as corrective to much of the thoughtlessly violent military action fare flooding the market. Though it's hard to imagine much crossover. (Another quick reminder that our FAMILY FRIENDLY label does not necessarily mean Kiddie Fare, but often a good 'talking points' pic for, say, parents & teens.)

No comments: