Eye in the Sky

Year: 2015
Genre: War Drama
Directed: Gavin Hood
Stars: Helen Mirren, Aaron Paul, Alan Rickman, Barkhad Abdi, Jeremy Northam, Phoebe Fox, Iain Glen, Ebby Weyime, Kim Engelbrecht, Armaan Haggio, Aisha Takow, Richard McCabe, Lex King
Production: eOne Films

What if every part of a weapon had a conscience? Everything from the hammer, to the bullet, to the trigger of a gun had to weigh the pros and cons of "neutralizing" a target before a decision can be made. Without culpability, a well-oiled machine can do it's job efficiently, effortlessly, heartlessly. But if we plug in the human element, and add in the collective experiences of multiple men and women, things become much, much more complicated.

Eye in the Sky addresses these themes in a smart and effortless way, combining a stellar ensemble cast and a labyrinthine script by Guy Hibbert. The film starts with steely-eyed Colonel Powell (Mirren) of English military intelligence, tracking a cell Al-Shabaab terrorists. On the ground in Nairobi, Kenya, Damisi (Weyime) and Jama (Abdi) spy on the cell with various small drones and spy equipment. U.S. Air Force analysts in Hawaii reference the faces they see with a database of names while Lieutenant General Frank Benson (Rickman) supervises from London with several members of her Majesty's government. The eye in the sky is a Reaper drone controlled from Nevada and piloted by 2nd Lieutenant Steve Watts (Paul) and A1C Carrie Gershon (Fox). What starts as a routine intelligence operation meant to increase situational awareness turns into an escalating debacle when Al-Shabaab leadership unexpectedly shows up, armed with explosives.

The film asks a lot of it's audience, forcing the viewer to consider the increasingly ambiguous situation through different lenses. There are objectors who bring up the legal ramifications of targeting British and American citizens, analysts who concern themselves with Collateral Damage Estimates, British officials who debate the possible political fallout, bureaucrats unwilling to be pull the trigger and military brass who worry if they do nothing lives will be lost. No matter your inclinations and attitudes towards drone warfare, each unique perspective is so well defined as to question if not outright challenge your worldview. Director Gavin Hood leaves no one off the hook, coolly analyzing every angle like a college professor using midwifery to garner understanding and empathy.

There's no fighting in here, this is a war room!

Yet Hood gets lost in the tall grass when he ruminates on the few moments of black humor. Each time a brow-sweating bureaucrat or a confused politician worries about culpability, they decide to remand up to a higher authority. What results are elongated episodes of telephone which would be welcomed in a film resembling In the Loop (2009) or No Man's Land (2001). Yet in a film that injects liberal amounts of humanism, largely with the involvement of an innocent Somali girl, the humor feels out of place.

Thankfully if there is any cast who can pull off a film as morally ambiguous as Eye in the Sky without succumbing to farce, it would be this one. Aaron Paul makes a surprisingly nimble foil to Dame Helen Mirren's ready, able and willing Colonel. As he is the only person with a finger literally on the trigger, Paul's Lieutenant Watts is not only the most concerned about collateral damage, but ultimately the one who has to positively ID any victims of the drone's payload. Alan Rickman gives a penultimate performance as the General and by all accounts balances his humanity with his experience as a military officer. While the character seems to dilute under moments of frustration, he ends his performance with the most powerful line in the whole film. As for the always dependable Barkhad Abdi; the character's creativity and pragmatism not only serves an instant benefit to the plot but the physicality he brings to his performance elevates the noted character actor to one whose story I really want to see. Seriously Hollywood, give this guy the starring performance he rightfully deserves.

I told you it was a think piece

Eye in the Sky is a challenging, suspenseful and rewarding think piece that aptly utilizes it's talented cast. It tells the story of men and women who present nearly all the angles and algebra behind modern warfare in exhausting detail. While doing so, it does not insult its audience with clear heroes and villains but showcases a mosaic of humanity, warts and all. Grounded in realism and democratic in it's message, Eye in the Sky is a small movie in need of a large audience.

Final Grade: B+