Red Eye Review

Before now director / writer Wes Craven has made us jump out of our skins thanks to razor-fingered psychos ("A Nightmare On Elm Street"), sicko cannibals ("The Hills Have Eyes") and post-modern killers ("Scream"). Well now he takes his brand of horror to the skies as a young hotel manager finds herself having to help an assassin at 30,000 ft. The scares star when Lisa Reisert (Rachel McAdams) befriends fellow flyer Jackson (Cillian Murphy) as they wait to board a plane to Miami. But his charming demeanour evaporates soon after take-off as he reveals far more about her than she thinks and fills her in on a plot that involves the murder of a controversial politician. Jackson needs her to carry out his plan and if she doesn't, her dad (Brian Cox) will die.

Genuinely exhilarating, "Red Eye" is a great return to form for Craven after the mess that was "Cursed". Despite being far more of a thriller that his favoured horror genre, Wes seems to revel in the claustrophobic surroundings of the plane and doesn't let things get away from him once Jackson and Lisa are on the ground, splicing punchy action with tense hide and seek moments. The film is at times a bit reminiscent of 1995 real time thriller "Nick Of Time" but Craven adds enough originality to keep things fresh.

Murphy ("Batman Returns") is seriously creepy as Jackson, finely balancing his early charm with the cold killer revealed as the film progresses while McAdams ("Mean Girls") is both spunky and fragile as Lisa realises she has to take action to save innocent lives. The pair are tipped for big things in Hollywood and "Red Eye" certainly won't hurt their reputations. And it goes a long way to restoring Craven's as a master scarer.