Review of Eye in the Sky (2007) by Ian H — 31 Jul 2016

Eye in the Sky is (to my knowledge) the first major movie to tackle the logistics and ethics of drone warfare. It does so as an edge-of-your-seat thriller told in real time, and the results are a heavy examination of the morality of modern warfare.

Gavin Hood does a very nice job of remaining mostly ambivalent about the subject, as we watch a far-flung group of colonels, generals, lawyers, and drone pilots grapple with the weight of preventing a suicide bombing at the cost of some particularly heart wrenching collateral damage.

What really makes this film sing though is the outstanding ensemble cast. Helen Mirren as a hawkish colonel eager to prevent a terrorist attack, collateral damage be damned, is amazing. She's playing the role typically reserved for a Hollywood man's man and crushes it.

Literally everyone is great. It's also Alan Rickman's final performance, and it's hard not to get a little weepy every time he shows up on screen playing a classic Alan Rickman type.