Eye in the Sky

Military thrillers in the modern age have a lot of material to deal with. Whether it's the Second Gulf War, the invasion of Afghanistan, ISIS, drone strikes, there's sadly many events that are ripe for dramatisation and action.

Eye In The Sky takes a sideways approach to this by not so much focusing on the action but what the lead-up to it is. Helen Mirren is an icy British officer who has been tasked with hunting a terrorist cell, one of whose number is a British citizen. From her bunker, she directs Aaron Paul and Phoebe Fox, two drone pilots based in Nevada, and Captain Phillips' Barkhad Abdi, an intelligence agent on the ground. Before she can strike and kill her target, she must have the authorisation from Alan Rickman and Jeremy Northam, one a senior officer who's charged with liaising and the other an elected official.

As these things go, the plan is to strike from a drone and lay waste to the cell in one swoop as they are planning a suicide attack in the very near future. However, matters are complicated and so begins the film. We see Helen Mirren's character who sees a target and will stop at nothing to destroy it, whilst Aaron Paul and Phoebe Fox wrestle with the consequences. Jeremy Northam, meanwhile, flutters and flounders over calling the shot - eventually kicking the decision up to his Foreign Secretary, Iain Glen, who then promptly kicks it back down to him.

The film plays out like a chamber drama, but the tension between it all so crushing that it becomes a tightly-wound thriller. We can see the physical strain it's having on everyone to have make a tough decision and nothing is left out. We see every step of the way how people want absolution, how they want to make sure they're covered in the fallout and that it's the only available option to them. The sharp editing provides a sense of alacrity and the performances right around the table are pitch-perfect. Helen Mirren is perfect as the dead-eyed, calculating officer whilst Alan Rickman gives a much more internalised performance than anything we've seen. Aaron Paul, likewise, gives a straightforward approach to the role and doesn't allow himself to get carried away, as he often does. Jeremy Northam, as well, does give you a sense of just how weak-willed and oily the whole system is, whilst Barkhad Abdi provides some of the action beats throughout the film with aplomb

What's intriguing about the film itself is how it makes the audience flick between the various sides. At one point, you find yourself egging on Helen Mirren and, in a heartbeat, you're horrified at what you're doing. Gavin Hood, whose career has been spotty, has hit upon something very interesting here. There's elements of courtroom drama, tense spy thrillers and moral drama going on, but it never feels messy or overwrought. Instead, it's a slickly made, tightly-wound, highly efficient thriller with a strong narrative that carries through the entire film.

One of the best military thrillers you'll see this year.