red eye movie review guardian

Red Eye review – the mile-high mystery that wishes it were Hijack

Instead of Idris Elba cranking it up to 11, we have the serviceable Richard Armitage downing G&Ts while handcuffed to his plane seat. Then the bodies start to pile up …

I f it’s Sunday – or Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday or Saturday – it must be time for a serviceable new thriller starring Richard Armitage . They’re usually on Netflix and adapted from a Harlan Coben bestseller (The Stranger, Stay Close, Fool Me Once); though they’re also sometimes on Netflix and adapted from a Josephine Hart novel (Damage, renamed Obsession for TV). This time, he is serviceably thrilling on ITV1 and ITVX in Red Eye, written by Peter A Dowling (with Jingan Young taking on episode four).

Armitage is Dr Matthew Nolan, first seen stumbling out of a Beijing nightclub with a knife wound, before smashing his car into a traffic barrier in an attempt, one assumes, to avoid another stabbing. Viewerly interest piqued, we cut to him arriving at Heathrow and promptly being arrested – or whatever variation these border agents perform – for the killing of a young woman who was in his car when it crashed. She was the daughter of a Party general and, in order not to jeopardise a fragile energy deal with China, the government agrees to send him straight back there to answer the charges.

But, splutters the good doctor, he didn’t do it! There was no one in the car with him when he crashed. He spoke to the woman at the post-conference party – where many other good doctors were in attendance – and left. He’s being framed. But why? And by whom?

The officer assigned to escort him back to China on the titular red-eye flight cares not a jot. She is DC Hana Li (Jing Lusi), narked because she has been stuck with this task below her pay grade purely because she is of Chinese descent, and convinced of his guilt because, um, the border agent she met said he done it and showed her a picture of the dead woman. “Your money and your white privilege made you think you could get away with it,” she snarls as she handcuffs him to his seat. She does let him down double G&Ts to his heart’s content, though I hope she brings a little more critical thinking to her actual cases. But there is no time to dwell on this, as things are moving apace.

Four other doctors at the conference, known to have seen Nolan talking to this woman, are asked to return to China with their extradited colleague to give witness statements. Three agree, one does not. He is last seen muttering suspiciously into a phone and then getting kidnapped into a white van. Should have got on the plane, Chris.

Or should he? Because within a few hours of takeoff, the bodies are piling up. Poisonings; thumps on heads made to look like accidents. Where is Idris Elba from Hijack when you need him? Fortunately, DC Li steps up. It’s a more phone-calls-to-authorities approach than Elba’s hands-on method at first, but more action soon arrives. The pilot remains unharmed at the end of the first two episodes available for review, but as he kisses a photo of his family before takeoff we assume he is marked for death. I suspect there will be some plummeting to be done before this thing is over.

Back on terra firma, we have Lesley Sharp miscast as Madeline Delaney, head of MI5. This seems to mean moving and talking very slowly to everyone. (But I suppose this may be accurate? Most of my knowledge of MI5 comes from Spooks and they all seem to move pretty fast there, but I accept that this too is television and possibly not an infallible source.) She is against Nolan’s extradition but the Home Office is adamant that the doctor goes. There is clearly something sinister writhing beneath the surface involving our government and the Chinese, but whether this is all to do with the building of a few nuclear power stations or darker forces at work is not yet clear.

Meanwhile, wouldn’t you know it, a bloody journalist has picked up the scent and has started to investigate Nolan’s unusual return to the scene of his alleged crime. She is Li’s half-sister, Jess (Jemma Moore), and they are already on no-speaks because of some unspecified betrayal over her last story.

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That, really, ladies and gentleman, is about all there is to say about this perfectly fun, perfectly functional twist-n-conspiracy-laden tale. If you watch the first episode you will very likely watch them all and they will slip down a treat. And then you will forget about it until the next time Armitage pops up – Tuesday, say.

Richard Armitage

A first-class thriller from Wes Craven

Cillian Murphy shares a not-so-tender "mile-high" moment with Rachel McAdams in Wes Craven's "Red Eye."

Wes Craven ’s “Red Eye” is movie that wants to be a good thriller, and moves competently, even relentlessly, toward that goal. It’s helped enormously by Rachel McAdams , whose performance is convincing because she keeps it at ground level; thrillers are invitations to overact, but she remains plausible even when the action ratchets up around her. When she’s stalking a terrorist with a hockey stick, she seems like a real woman stalking a real terrorist with a real hockey stick. It’s not as easy as it sounds.

The terrorist is played by Cillian Murphy , who was the sinister Scarecrow in “ Batman Begins ” and here plays a young man who seems pleasant and attractive to the heroine, until she asks him what his business is, and all the warmth goes out of his eyes as he says, “As fate would have it, my business is all about you.”

They meet in the Dallas-Ft. Worth airport. She’s Lisa, a hotel desk manager, on her way home to Miami. He’s the cute guy who helps her put down a jerk, buys her a drink, and ends up with the seat next to hers on the overnight flight. Murphy is handsome, but, like James Spader , the good looks come with a warning: There are ominous undertones here. Speaking softly, he explains that her father is being held hostage, that her help will be needed in a plot to blow up the deputy secretary of homeland security, and that her job is to call the hotel and have the security guy put in a suite where he can be more easily assassinated. The encouraging angle is that the deputy secretary is taken that seriously.

What makes this goal worthy of a thriller is that the terrorist plan is of course nine times more complicated than it needs to be, and is constructed entirely out of things that could go wrong. It’s remarkable that terrorists like these still possess feet they have not shot off. About the plot I will say no more, except in a general way: The scenes on board the airplane are about as convincing and plausible as they can be, given the situation. And the scenes after the plane lands bring a cool excellence to the standard scenario in which the killer and the victim stalk one another.

Maybe what I like best about the movie is its reticence. After a summer of crashes, bangs, endless chase scenes and special effects that belittle the actors standing in front of them, what a pleasure to see characters in a thriller doing what people like themselves possibly could do. There are no supernatural or superhuman feats in the film, unless you count the piddling detail that a character isn’t slowed down by an unexpected tracheotomy. The movie, bless its heart, even tries to make this development plausible, by providing a doctor who eyeballs the victim and says (I quote from memory) “It’s not too bad — only the larynx.”

The rise of Rachel McAdams has been spectacular, if only because it has been so steep; in 2002, she had eighth billing in “ The Hot Chick .” The only thing better would have been ninth billing. But then in 2004 she starred in “ Mean Girls ,” as the bitchiest girl in Lindsay Lohan ’s high school. It was a surprisingly good movie, and then came a straight romantic lead in “ The Notebook ” and a comic romantic lead in “ Wedding Crashers ,” where Owen Wilson fell in love with her and caught a heart-warming case of sincerity. Now this.

The previous three movies positioned McAdams as a rising star. “Red Eye” will be more important, because casting directors, who know what to look for, will see that she brings more presence and credibility to her role than is really expected; she acts without betraying the slightest awareness that she’s inside a genre. I wonder if that has anything to do with the fact that she’s Canadian and thus culturally trained to avoid calling unnecessary attention to herself. Too many young Hollywood actors, especially in thrillers, think it’s all about them. Her performance qualifies her for heavy-duty roles. Cillian Murphy is already established and does not need discovering, but here he shows an ability to modulate his character instead of gnashing the scenery. They’re very effective together.

Wes Craven, the director, has been making thrillers for a long time, and knows how to do it. From “ Last House on the Left ” (1972) through “ Swamp Thing ” (1982), “ The Serpent and the Rainbow ” (1988) “Wes Craven’s New Nightmare” (1994) and the “ Scream ” movies, he has put stories and characters ahead of Gotcha! moments. Watching “Red Eye” function so smoothly, doing exactly what it was intended to do, I was reminded of Howard Hawks ’ definition of a good movie: “Three great scenes. No bad scenes.” Craven scores two and one. Not bad.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

Jayma Mays as Cynthia
Rachel McAdams as Lisa
Jack Scalia as Charles Keefe
Cillian Murphy as Rippner
Beth Toussaint Coleman as Linda Keefe
Brian Cox as Dad

Screenplay by

Carl Ellsworth

Produced by

Chris Bender
Marianne Maddalena
Marco Beltrami
Patrick Lussier
Stuart Levy

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FILM REVIEW

Sticking Out a Tense Flight With a Terrorist as Seatmate

By Manohla Dargis

Aug. 19, 2005

In "Red Eye," a nifty, tense thriller directed by Wes Craven, the young actress Rachel McAdams plays the world's greatest hotel worker. Even Russell Crowe would be hard-pressed to misbehave under the gentle watch of Ms. McAdams's charmer, an amalgam of smiles and steel named Lisa Reisert, who greets every problem -- cranky hotel guests and terrorists alike -- with can-do spirit. If you don't like your hotel room, Lisa will move you to nicer accommodations. And if you're planning to take out a deputy secretary of homeland security, well, Lisa will take care of you, too.

Written by Carl Ellsworth from a story by Mr. Ellsworth and Dan Foos, "Red Eye" brings together a classic thriller setup (a damsel in distress) and a relevant-sounding if thoroughly undercooked story involving worldwide terrorism. Despite a half-dozen actors made up to look like Secret Service agents and a big bang that ends the show, the real action in "Red Eye" unfolds in the close confines of an airborne passenger plane. When Lisa, en route home to Miami after attending a funeral, settles into steerage, she has no clue that a crying baby will be the least of her worries, what with the turbulence at takeoff and her very own personal terrorist, Jackson (Cillian Murphy), parked in the next seat.

Lisa first meets Jackson while standing in the check-in line. Hard-wired to help, Lisa has just gently berated a rude passenger on behalf of a harried airline worker, only to receive a mouthful of boorish attitude in return. Jackson, who had been hovering behind her, comes to Lisa's defense, forming a tentative bond that will be strengthened when they have a drink in the airport bar. Later, the two will also be seated in their own row on the plane, an apparent coincidence that pleases Lisa, deepening the rosy flush in her cheeks. After Jackson talks Lisa through their bumpy takeoff, she asks him what he does for a living. Oh, he says, turning his icy blues on her, "government overthrow, high-profile assassinations," you know, the usual.

It would give away too much of the film's skeletal plot to explain why Lisa has attracted such lethal company. Suffice it to say that Lisa's father, Joe (Brian Cox), plays a part in the larger picture, as does the deputy secretary of homeland security (Jack Scalia) and a rabbity hotel clerk (Jayma Mays). Mostly, though, the focus remains on Lisa and Jackson, who to outward appearances look like any other traveling young couple. Mr. Craven, a horror veteran who has a long history of infusing seemingly ordinary situations with a palpable sense of dread (think of Drew Barrymore simply on the phone in the opening of "Scream"), turns the sights and sounds of two people talking into a nerve-jangling duet for cat and mouse, hunter and prey.

Mr. Murphy, who plays a Renfield-like character with appreciable wit in "Batman Begins," makes enough of a picture-perfect villain here that his agent should worry about typecasting. The actor may not be remotely believable as a man of international mystery, but those baby blues look cold enough to freeze water and his wolfish leer suggests its own terrors.

For her part, the rather more robust Ms. McAdams appears as if she could take Mr. Murphy down on the count of three. If you don't look too closely, if you fail to see past the lissome figure and the dimples that punctuate her smile, you might not notice how this actress holds her gaze a few beats longer than need be, suggesting a depth of intensity uncommon in most Hollywood ingénues.

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Screen Rant

"i don’t think it’s a good movie": cillian murphy explains why his 2005 thriller is a fan-favorite.

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Red Eye Movie Ending Explained: Does Lisa's Dad Survive?

One of tom cruise's best action movies lands on netflix's global chart 10 years later, star wars rewrites return of the jedi, fixing one of george lucas' biggest mistakes.

Cillian Murphy explains why Red Eye is a fan-favorite film, but he personally doesn't think it's a good movie.
Murphy attributes the film's popularity to the duality of his character, which Rachel McAdams agrees makes him a great villain.
Despite not considering it a good movie, Red Eye 's positive reviews and box office success had an impact on Murphy's career.

Cillian Murphy explains why Red Eye is a fan-favorite film, though he doesn't " think it’s a good movie ." Directed by Wes Craven , the psychological thriller follows a female hotel manager who is kidnapped by a charming domestic terrorist aboard a red-eye flight and, threatened with the potential murder of her father, becomes ensnared in a political assassination attempt. Other than Murphy as the terrorist, the cast is also led by Rachel McAdams and Succession 's Brian Cox as her character's father.

In a profile by GQ , Murphy was asked about Red Eye 's fan-favorite status, and he explained it's likely due to the " duality " of his character, while McAdams also explained what makes Murphy such a great villain. Though he loved working with McAdams and " had fun making it ," Murphy doesn't think Red Eye is " a good movie ." Read their full comments below:

Murphy : Oh, I know, it’s crazy! I think it’s the duality of it. It’s why I wanted to play it. That two thing. The nice guy and the bad guy in one. The only reason it appealed to me is you could do that turn, you know? McAdams : They say the nicest people sometimes make the best villains. We’d listen to music and gab away while doing the crossword puzzle, which he brought every day and would graciously let me chime in on... I think the number one question I got about Cillian way back then was whether or not he wore contact lenses. Murphy : I love Rachel McAdams and we had fun making it. But I don’t think it’s a good movie. It’s a good B movie.

Collage of Lisa holding a field hockey stick and Jackson grabbing Lisa's face in Red Eye

In Wes Craven's Red Eye movie, Lisa (Rachel McAdams) must find a way to both save her dad and stop Jackson (Cillian Murphy) from killing a family.

Is Red Eye A Good Movie?

While recognizing that " it’s a good B movie ," it's somewhat surprising Murphy doesn't consider Red Eye to be a good movie . Released in 2005, the film received positive reviews from critics and fans of Craven's work , resulting in 80% and 64% scores from the critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, where its Critics Consensus reads, " With solid performances and tight direction from Wes Craven, Red Eye is a brisk, economic thriller ." Red Eye was also a box office success that grossed nearly $100 million and was subsequently broadcast on ABC several times, which helped the film garner a cult following.

However, Murphy's standards for what constitutes " a good movie " may be much higher . Over his career, Murphy has collaborated with Christopher Nolan six times , starring in his masterpieces like The Dark Knight , Inception , Dunkirk , and Oppenheimer . While Red Eye doesn't meet those standards, it did have a major imprint on his career, released a couple of months after Batman Begins , which marked Murphy's debut as Scarecrow and also contributed to his reputation as a villain. However, as Murphy mentions, Red Eye showcased his range from a charming man to a sinister terrorist, helping cement him as a supremely versatile actor.

Red Eye is streaming on Paramount+ and MGM+.

Red Eye Review

02 Sep 2005

For his 20th feature, horror legend Wes Craven took a conscious decision to leave behind the genre which has served him so well over 30 years in favour of close relative the psychological thriller, in this case transferring the tribulation and terror from suburban, picket-fenced Middle America to the edgy context of the passenger jet. It’s a neat little concept, as hotel manageress Lisa Reisert (Mean Girls' McAdams) — not a fan of flying as it is — takes the red-eye home to Miami, only to discover that crashing is the least of her worries when she finds herself effectively taken hostage by fellow passenger Jackson (Murphy), on a murderous mission of which she now finds herself an unwilling part.Tapping into and then exaggerating anxieties many of us share, Craven handles the first hour with aplomb (but no bomb), slowly building the set-up while having fun with the clichés (a young blonde child is seen boarding her first flight alone), before switching gear abruptly when Jackson proves in an instant to be far from the charming would-be suitor Lisa was hoping would distract her from the flight. As they near Miami and Lisa’s deathly dilemma becomes more desperate, Craven keeps the energy high, introducing vicious new twists at a breathless pace while increasing the claustrophobia with almost constant close-ups of the central pair (screenwriter Ellsworth cites Phone Booth as an influence). McAdams makes an engaging and admirably resourceful heroine, while a typically impressive Murphy proves he doesn’t need a sack-cloth shroud and fear serum to scare — his ice-blue eyes, cold calm and sunken cheekbones making him an alluring yet deeply unnerving villain.Still, you can take the boy out of Elm Street, but as the last 20 minutes prove, it would seem you can’t entirely take Elm Street out of the boy. As the plane lands and the action transfers to Lisa’s family home, Craven returns to the standard tropes of the genre he shaped, with little of the postmodern irony of Scream — after a (presumably unintentionally) comic injury, Murphy’s Jackson even finds himself rasping, stumbling and demonically glaring like the best horror-movie monster. Although disappointing after the superior thriller of the first 70 minutes, the audience is by now having so much fun, and Craven knows this stuff so well, happily this makes for a far from fatal flaw.

Movies | 06 09 2005

Movies | 22 08 2005

Suggestions

Review: red eye.

Red Eye is a model of efficiency, shrouded in a veil of secrecy.

One of the ingenious promos for Red Eye sets up the film as just another Hollywood rom-com, with Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy batting eyelashes at each other in the check-in lines and waiting areas of an airport terminal. But then the advertisement pulls the rug out from under us, revealing a very sinister card up its sleeve.

The flair of the devious promo is impressive, but what’s truly remarkable about it is how in sync it is with the moral and emotional predicament of a hotel manager, Lisa (McAdams), when she meets a mysterious stranger, Jackson (Murphy), at a Dallas airport, falls for the man’s calculated smooth talk, and realizes shortly after sitting next to him on a red eye flight to Miami that his job is to “overthrow governments.” A game of cat and mouse is in effect from the beginning of Wes Craven’s film, only Lisa doesn’t know she’s been playing—and for anyone who was duped by the film’s promos, the young woman’s crisis becomes fiercely identifiable. Lisa’s panic, like ours, reflects the fears and uncertainties of our political moment.

Red Eye is a model of efficiency, shrouded in a veil of secrecy; its pleasure lies in that very veil being lifted and revealing what lurks beneath, in this case an empowerment fantasy conflated with a political parable. When Jackson tells Lisa that he’s on her flight to Miami in order to get her to help him assassinate the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, a guest at the hotel she manages, there’s no reason why she shouldn’t comply when Jackson holds her father’s life over her head. But a scar on the woman’s chest points to a traumatic encounter from her past—and her resistance to Jackson’s demands becomes a fierce form of defiance. Smart as he may be, Jackson unknowingly feeds this force of resistance with lines like “I didn’t mean to invade your personal space.” He keeps hitting the same raw nerve and, in effect, summons a revolution.

Red Eye ’s crackerjack premise and nail-biting excitement brings to mind Cellular , another nifty B movie about the interconnectivity of human experience. Except here the focus isn’t the web of telecommunication that keeps us connected but something a less tangible: female intuition.

The passengers aboard the film’s red eye are a motley crew of schmucks, but among them is a young girl, Rebecca (Brittany Oaks), who’s conscious that something is amiss between Jackson and Lisa. Along with Lisa and the co-worker, Cynthia (Jayma Mays), she’s forced to incorporate into Jackson’s assassination plans, Rebecca helps to form a trifecta of female solidarity against a sinister male threat (for sure, it’s no accident that his last name is Rippner). In this way, Red Eye summons all sorts of turf wars. The political baggage in the story may seem beside the point, but it’s something onto which Lisa’s empowerment ritual is engraved. When she screams “not in my house,” her bold cry resonates not only as a defense of country but body as well.

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Ed Gonzalez

Ed Gonzalez is the co-founder of Slant Magazine . A member of the New York Film Critics Circle, his writing has appeared in The Village Voice , The Los Angeles Times , and other publications.

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Release details.

Release date: Friday 2 September 2005
Duration: 85 mins

Cast and crew

Director: Wes Craven
Screenwriter: Carl Ellsworth
Rachel McAdams
Cillian Murphy
Jack Scalia

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Red Eye TV review — ludicrous ITV thriller will leave you looking for an emergency exit

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Common Sense Says
Parents Say 5 Reviews
Kids Say 16 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

By Cynthia Fuchs , based on child development research. How do we rate?

Entertaining thriller for teens and up.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 15+?

Brief drinking (Bay Breeze) in airport lounge.

Some cursing, mostly by the frustrated villain.

Mild flirtation. An airport bathroom tryst is hinted at.

Hitting, stabbing with a pen, shooting, slamming with household items, crashing

Airport shows some shops, Dr. Phil gets a plug.

Any Positive Content?

Terrorists are nasty, heroic girl is resourceful.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Violence & Scariness

Hitting, stabbing with a pen, shooting, slamming with household items, crashing cars, shooting a shoulder-mounted missile. Dead bodies.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Positive messages.

Parents need to know that the film focuses on a scary man threatening a young woman, who fights back with ingenuity and some violence. Directed by Wes Craven ( Nightmare on Elm Street , Scream ), it adopts a basic slasher movie structure, with jump scenes, clever framing, and ominous lighting, music, and camera angles: all this can be scary for younger viewers. Characters use harsh language, drink and smoke briefly, and commit various sorts of mayhem (hitting, stabbing with a pen, shooting, slamming with household items, crashing cars, shooting a shoulder-mounted missile). To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Parent and Kid Reviews

Parents say (5)
Kids say (16)

Based on 5 parent reviews

No gore, sex, just suspense

An intense and entertaining thriller, what's the story.

Following her grandmother's funeral, Lisa ( Rachel McAdams ) first on her way back to her Miami home. She checks in with the hotel she manages as the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Charles Keefe ( Jack Scalia ) is arriving; only Lisa knows precisely what he needs and when. Seated next to Lisa is Jackson Ripper ( Cillian Murphy ). When Lisa observes that this name choice "wasn't very nice of your parents," he smiles, so slightly, and jokes, "That's what I told them, before I killed them." Before long, Jackson's flirtation with Lisa turns ugly. Threatening to have Lisa's father killed, he insists that she change the Deputy Secretary's room in order to set him up for a missile attack.

Is It Any Good?

An entertaining, mostly smart scary movie, Wes Craven 's RED EYE effectively updates the slasher flick to address current fears. The monster here is no lumbering and disfigured nightmare, but instead an attractive, slightly built mercenary -- a terrorist for hire. While the specifics of the terrorist plot only get more outrageous, it establishes a recognizable and nervous-making context and gives Lisa all sorts of opportunities to assert her resistance to being bullied, to stand up for her country, and save her dad. That is, she becomes the Last Girl of slasher films, an action hero, and a domestic defender, all in one swoop.

This multiplication of her roles is helped along when she makes Jackson angry on landing, deciding that she will not participate in the terror plot or pretend it's not her job to stop it. She is the ideal citizen, post-9/11. Inexplicably, the professional Jackson takes her resistance personally, and ends up chasing her to her home. This likens him to the horror movie monsters who invade homes (Freddy Krueger among them) and only compounds Red Eye 's many metaphorical allusions to "homeland security." Tough, ingenious, and completely fun to watch, Lisa makes the narrative absurdities seem irrelevant.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the ways Lisa comes up with to resist the terrorist, as she tries to leave messages, get attention from flight attendants, and finally resists (and solicits audience cheers). How does the movie build toward showing her resourcefulness, by first making her seem vulnerable and afraid? As the terrorists threaten family units (not only Lisa's father, but also the family of the Homeland Security Deputy Director), how does the movie use the idea of "terrorism" as an updated metaphorical danger?

Movie Details

In theaters : August 19, 2005
On DVD or streaming : January 10, 2006
Cast : Brian Cox , Cillian Murphy , Rachel McAdams
Director : Wes Craven
Inclusion Information : Female actors
Studio : DreamWorks
Genre : Thriller
Run time : 85 minutes
MPAA rating : PG-13
MPAA explanation : some intense sequences of violence, and language
Last updated : September 5, 2024

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Buckle up for a heavy dosage of turbulence, a complex conspiracy and a couple of overly righteous customers in Wes Craven’s incredibly effective 2005 thriller, Red Eye . 90 minutes of claustrophobic hell that is among the upper echelons of the thriller genre.

Lisa Reisert (Rachel McAdams), in the midst of grief and major familial upheaval, finds herself an unwilling cog in a major political conspiracy when she stumbles across the charming Jackson Rippner (Cillian Murphy), an apparent business manager also booked in on the same delayed flight on the titular flight. Craven doesn’t reinvent the genre as such but his spin on it draws upon the years spent atop his craft, forging a ridiculously tense, near heart-destroying atmosphere.

Ultimately, the film knows exactly what it is, and that is something that makes it so endearing. Effectively a character-driven vehicle, the plot is simple. Hotel staffer Lisa has been groomed by a mystery man, Jackson, into moving controversial, outspoken politician Charles Keefe (Jack Scalia) from his preferred room into one less protected as an easier way of assassinating the man who has ruffled a few feathers. It doesn’t repeat or rehash old, tired conventions of the genre. It isn’t a case of “cold war” style themes and oppositions. There is no hyper-trained, competent spy at the heart of the piece.

Red Eye strips it to the very bare minimum, yet sells those barebones as a premium and frankly, it’s believable. It effectively leans on the performance aspects, the opening half-hour is focused largely on the duo of Murphy and McAdams and given it feels like a naturally occurring connection, audiences are immediately invited to hop on board of the created world here and not for one second does anything feel too far out of the realms of believability – a true breath of fresh air in a genre plagued by cliche and genericism.

While Brian Cox may well count himself as the biggest star, “name” wise that is, Cillian Murphy is fiercely on form. Serially underused by Hollywood, the Irishman is towering, almost screaming for more recognition in his role as Rippner. A naturally talented and passionate actor, Red Eye breaks the shackles usually on him in those smaller, cameo-like roles, drawing on a few conventions of the rom-com and of course its intended action and thriller blend basis. There’s such a rich, diverse character on show, which draws out an incredibly broad-ranging turn. Donning an ear-to-ear smile and turning up the charm, to being suddenly dead behind the eyes and emotionless, he fits the role of villain so perfectly, even demonstrating his physical presence, as Rippner pressures his subject into playing her part. Such a memorable turn, it’s a serious case for one of Murphy’s best performances.

Sharing in that incredibly undervalued perception is Rachel McAdams who makes for an incredible lead. With her character Lisa, torn between recently divorced parents, on a hot streak of bad luck and weighed down with grief, McAdams’ rounded performance prevents those from becoming trope-like, shallow beats that form a single dimension. An instantly likeable and relatable figure, it compliments the pacing of the film – with a character, proper, from the first few seconds, audiences are thrown into this world which immediately feels real, a testament to its writing and those who bring it to life on screen.

A year on from Me an Girls marks a breakneck twist for McAdams, who stars as a bright-eyed everywoman. Forced into using all her wits in an attempt to save her father, Joe (Brian Cox), and herself from the clutches of Rippner and his plot. Red Eye has elements of the cult hit Speed, a pure showcase of the charms of its star. In what must have been an incredibly draining role on account of the sheer emotional toll and intensity that forms her character, her performance is breathtaking and packs a tonne of surprise too. McAdams has genuine action star credentials.

Evident a lot in Scream for multipurpose use, be that satire or simply a means of extenuating the horror, Craven’s direction has complete control over a setting, its environment and its scale. The late stage of Craven’s filmography, wherein Red Eye falls, did steady a little, briefly moving away from horror, but his 2005 effort truly capitalises on that mastery of film form. Freeing our protagonist from the plane during the closing twenty minutes, the preceding hour becomes unbearably claustrophobic. With each passing second that plane becomes more and more inescapable making for a difficult watch as Red Eye initially paints out doom for its protagonist. A truly masterful realisation of a script and something that should be a blueprint for that genre as a whole, Red Eye is a reflection of Craven’s masterful direction and understanding of the visual structures behind the horror/thriller genre.

Red Eye is unjustly slept upon. A tightly refined, highly effective thriller that deserves a lot more acclaim, the film contains some of the finer performances from its seasoned stars and offers a refreshing, new side to a master genre filmmaker’s decades-long career.

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In Theaters

Rachel McAdams as Lisa Reisert; Cillian Murphy as Jackson Rippner; Brian Cox as Joe Reisert; Jayma Mays as Cynthia; Jack Scalia as Charles Keefe

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Movie Review

Flying is not Lisa Reisert’s favorite thing to do. So when her red-eye flight back home to Miami is delayed, she’s happy to be distracted from her fear by the charming Jackson Rippner, whom she meets while waiting in line. The two continue their flirting over drinks and, lo and behold, end up seated next to each other on the plane.

Once the cabin door is locked, however, everything changes. Jackson reveals he’s been following Lisa and needs a “favor” from her. Turns out he’s been hired to ensure the assassination of Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Charles Keefe. Lisa, who’s in charge of reservations at the ritzy Miami hotel Keefe will be arriving at shortly, can change the VIP’s room arrangements with one call. If she doesn’t oblige, Jackson’s got a man stationed outside her father’s house, ready to kill Dad.

Positive Elements

Lisa has a kind heart, which comes through in her dealings with family, friends, hotel customers and strangers alike. When a rude man berates an airline representative for his flight’s delay, Lisa’s the first one to defend the worker for doing the best she can do. She maintains the same professionalism and courtesy to demanding hotel customers (see “Other Negative Elements” for an exception), and she stands up for her co-workers.

It’s obvious that Lisa and her father love each other deeply. Throughout the movie, she does everything she can—often putting her own life at risk—to keep her dad safe. Yet her bravery isn’t just for her own relatives, as she also goes to great lengths to prevent Keefe, his family and her fellow airline passengers from being killed.

Spiritual Elements

Jackson makes a toast to Lisa’s grandmother, commenting that her “spirit is very much alive.” He also jokes that God created Tex-Mex.

Sexual & Romantic Content

Flight attendants make a few “mile high club” remarks when Lisa and Jackson end up in the bathroom together during the flight. Although nothing sexual occurred, as the pair exits the crowded space, Jackson crudely says, “Thanks for the quickie.” Lisa jokes about her grandmother living longer because of a boyfriend’s TLC.

Lisa takes off her shirt at the airport after having coffee spilled on it, and we see her in her bra. The camera later zooms in on a scar above her breast. A plane passenger wears a low-cut blouse.

Violent Content

People get shot, shot at, whacked over the head with a field hockey stick, run over with a vehicle, punched and kicked. A puddle of blood forms as one man dies. Another victim is stabbed in the throat with a pen (he later yanks it out). A man gets a shoe heel lodged in his leg. A chase scene includes chairs, vases and other household items being thrown.

Jackson chokes Lisa and frequently pushes her around. He also knocks her out with a head butt and lunges at her with a knife. On one occasion, she’s tossed down a flight of stairs. An entire section of a high-rise building explodes after being hit with a missile.

Lisa recounts being assaulted in a parking lot, which included having a knife held to her throat. Jackson jokes about killing his parents as a youngster.

Crude or Profane Language

The f-word gets its token one-per-PG-13 use; the s-word is heard just under a dozen times. God’s name is misused half that much (in addition to a couple utterances of “jeez.”). A handful of other mild profanities include “a–hole” and “h—.”

Drug & Alcohol Content

Despite the fact that the movie has such a thin plot (or maybe because of it), alcohol gets lots of mentions and screen time. Lisa and Jackson share drinks at an airport bar, where liquor bottles and glasses are shown in the background. He attempts to guess her beverage of choice, mentioning such generics as vodka and a screwdriver. The correct answer is a Bay Breeze, a glass of which Lisa downs. She later blames the drink—and some cheap wine she had at her grandmother’s funeral—for her clumsiness, though we suspect that Jackson may have slipped her a Mickey. A stewardess jokes about joining Lisa for another drink. Jackson makes a comment about how Lisa’s daily routine includes having a cocktail. Keefe’s room is prepared with goodies that include a bottle of Cristal and cigars. Lisa and a friend’s final act is heading to the hotel bar.

Other Noteworthy Elements

Lisa becomes irritated during an interaction with a pair of hotel guests and makes a crude remark to them. She also steals a car while being chased.

If you’ve seen the trailer for Red Eye , you know most of what happens. Girl meets guy. Girl sits next to guy on plane. Guy turns out to be an evil operative in an assassination plot who is holding her father hostage. What’s a girl to do?

The result is an 85-minute flyaway flick that feels more like a film school project than a nationally released movie from horror guru Wes Craven. Maybe the blame should rest on the shoulders of rookie screenwriter Carl Ellsworth, who’s used to writing one-hour dramas for TV (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Xena: Warrior Princess) . Apparently, he and Craven were counting on the believability of being stuck on an airplane with a gentleman-turned-killer to sustain the fear factor. And tension definitely runs high in the beginning as you wonder how in the world Lisa can possibly escape such a claustrophobic situation. But that’s about the only intriguing thing Red Eye has going for it. With its one-dimensional characters and quickly resolved conflict (not to mention vulgar language, violent confrontations and obsession with alcohol), this is one flight not worth staying awake for.

Marcus Yoars

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Cillian Murphy and Rachel McAdams in Red Eye (2005)

Lisa on her flight to Miami befriends Jackson who turns out to be a terrorist. Holding her hostage, he forces her to help him assassinate the United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Secur... Read all Lisa on her flight to Miami befriends Jackson who turns out to be a terrorist. Holding her hostage, he forces her to help him assassinate the United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security. Lisa on her flight to Miami befriends Jackson who turns out to be a terrorist. Holding her hostage, he forces her to help him assassinate the United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security.

Carl Ellsworth
Rachel McAdams
Cillian Murphy
803 User reviews
188 Critic reviews
71 Metascore
2 wins & 10 nominations

Top cast 76

Lisa Reisert

Jackson Rippner

Joe Reisert

Blonde Woman

Headphone Kid

Senior Flight Attendant

Charles Keefe
Marianne Taylor
(as Teresa Press-Marx)

Taxi Driver

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Irate Passenger

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Did you know

Trivia Cillian Murphy wanted the role of Jackson so badly that he took a plane from England to Hollywood two days before his wedding to have lunch with Wes Craven . Craven later gave him the part saying that his eyes won him over.
Goofs You can see when Jackson is throwing Lisa against the walls in the bathroom that he really has his hand behind her head. It was later revealed that Cillian Murphy did this on purpose. In an earlier take, he accidentally knocked Rachel McAdams out and wanted to prevent it from happening again.

Lisa Reisert : [on the plane] So what is it you do?

Jackson Rippner : Government overthrows, flashy high-profile assassinations. The usual.

Lisa Reisert : O.K. Why don't you just tell me what you do?

Jackson Rippner : I already did.

Connections Featured in The Making of 'Red Eye' (2006)
Soundtracks Diamondback-Cadillac Written by Tom Mesmer Performed by Soho Vamp

User reviews 803

christian123
Aug 19, 2005

Everything New on Prime Video in August

I didn't get the Jack Rippner joke.
What is 'Red Eye' about?
Is "Red Eye" based on a book?
August 19, 2005 (United States)
United States
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Ontario International Airport - 2900 E. Airport Drive, Ontario, California, USA
Dreamworks Pictures
BenderSpink
Craven-Maddalena Films
See more company credits at IMDbPro
$26,000,000 (estimated)
$57,891,803
$16,167,662
Aug 21, 2005
$96,258,201

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Runtime 1 hour 25 minutes
Dolby Digital

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Red Eye Review: ITV Thriller Starts Silly, Gets Great

Thriller fans, prepare to board.

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Richard Armitage and Jing Lusi as Dr Nolan and Hana Li on a plane in ITV's Red Eye

20 minutes in to Red Eye , a foot chase through Heathrow airport ends with a man making an impassioned plea outside a branch of Leon. He vaults over barriers like the kid in Love Actually and implores the crowd to film his testimony. Rightly wary of flash mob marriage proposals, the British holiday-going public are slow to act but get his message out: vascular surgeon Dr Matthew Nolan is being framed for murder and extradited to Beijing.

Is Nolan ( Richard Armitage ) guilty, or on the level? Is he being sacrificed by the British government to protect a valuable Chinese nuclear power deal, or is there a deeper conspiracy at work? DC Hana Li (Jing Lusi), the no-nonsense cop tasked with escorting Nolan on Flight 357, has six episodes to find out.

Li does find out in a thriller that very much rewards sticking with it through the somewhat silly early stages so it can build to a very entertaining finale with no shortage of twists. The opposite of so many other shows like it, Red Eye tightens as it goes. Instead of unravelling at the end, its threads are neatly tied up with some bonus emotional closure. Multiple unveilings and swerves lead to a thrilling last episode by which time the initially cardboardy characters will either have won you over or not obstructed your fun.

But before all that: the silliness.

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357 is no ordinary flight; it’s a jet-propelled country house from an Agatha Christie novel. (That’s metaphor, but also an unwritten Doctor Who episode I would watch). A mystery killer keeps bumping off the passengers, whose corpses get wrapped in airline blankets and stuffed into footwells and sleeping cabins while everybody else tries to enjoy their hot towel and in-flight movie. The murderer is among them but who are they, and what is their game?

In the early episodes, Red Eye ’s discovery of ‘one, two, no wait three , oh FFS you’re not telling me there’s another one?’ dead bodies verges on farce. After that’s done with, the real intrigue can begin.

The real intrigue is the investigation, or more properly, investigation s . DC Li’s in-flight sleuthing is matched on the ground by that of MI5 director Madeleine Delaney ( Lesley Sharp looking sharp ), and an aspiring journalist with a personal link to the story. The split of revelations for each of the three is handled well and importantly, happens fast. Playing out almost entirely mid-flight from London to Beijing, there’s very little waiting around for everybody to catch up with the latest developments or for things the audience already knows to be relayed down the phone.

Red Eye ’s fast pace is all to its credit. One revelation has barely sunk in before we’re onto the next and the next and the next. There’s very little time to reflect, which is generally how thriller fans like it, and certainly for the best in a show that favours lines of the “cut the crap or I’ll go full Snowdon on this” and “are you going to hide in a bottle or help me catch this bastard?” variety. The dialogue is perfunctory and as lacking in personality as the characters, but none of that matters because Red Eye is all about plot.

That’s not to denigrate the cast. Richard Armitage is as reliable as ever in the role of Nolan, but doesn’t have much to work with in terms of character. After spending six episodes in Dr Matthew Nolan’s company, my familiarity with the man extends to knowing that he’s a) a doctor, and b) a vegan. Jing Lusi’s performance feels boxed in by the generic dialogue, but does get the chance to escape with a plot thread rooted in Li’s British-Hong Kong family history. Lesley Sharp adds some gravitas, and was clearly born to play the head of MI5 dressed in a series of chic suits and silk blouses.

That plot, it’s worth saying, involves some crossover with screenwriter Peter A Dowling’s previous air-set thriller, the Jodie Foster -starring 2005 feature film Flightplan . In essence, planes: easier to hide in than you’d think! Like the first series of BBC One’s submarine-set murder mystery Vigil , there’s a backstage tour frisson about being allowed down the ladders and behind the flapping airplane curtains whence emerges your warm can of Britvic orange juice.

The rest of the story is just what you’d imagine: Chinese ministers, MI5/MI6 rivalries, the CIA special relationship, sniper assassins and sleazy Beijing nightclubs where people go “only when [they] want to disappear”. You’ve seen it and enjoyed it all before, though probably without such a decent lead as Lusi, and without the specifically British East and Southeast Asian characters and stories, which make for involving drama and are long overdue on our screens.

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All in all, a good time had. Ready to board?

Red Eye is streaming on ITVX .

Louisa Mellor | @Louisa_Mellor

Louisa Mellor is the Den of Geek UK TV Editor. She has written about TV, film and books for Den of Geek since 2010, and for…

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Red Eye takes TV’s most reliably exciting premise and makes it nearly unwatchable

The new itv thriller, set aboard an aircraft in peril, shows just how compelling aeroplane hijinks still are, writes louis chilton – even in a series as lacklustre as this.

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Richard Armitage as Dr Matthew Nolan in ‘Red Eye'

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D oes anyone actually look forward to flying? Some people actually fear it. Others grin and bear the tight legroom only because a person brings you alcohol to your seat at any time, around the clock. But one flight that is categorically not enjoyable is Red Eye .

The six-part series , which debuted on ITV over the weekend, follows a man ( Richard Armitage ) who arrives in the UK from a business trip to China, only to be immediately extradited back there to face charges for a murder he didn’t commit. Most of the series is set aboard the China-bound plane, which quickly becomes a crisis scenario for Armitage and his fellow passengers, including a shrewd law enforcement official played by Jing Lusi. They’re not having a nice flight, and neither are we. Because soon, the cabin is bursting with poison-laced ready meals, mounting bodies, and one increasingly hard-to-follow mystery.

It’s cheap and improbable stuff – a cavalcade of silly plot contrivances, shoddy dialogue, and stonily unintriguing political intrigue. On paper, the series should be impossible to sit through. Yet, as Nick Hilton writes in The Independent ’s two-star review, Red Eye is “just about watchable – if only in the way that the in-flight map is watchable after a few too many bloody marys”. You see, there is something about Red Eye that scratches viewers’ coarse, pulpy itch for spectacle. It’s incredibly hard to make an aeroplane-set thriller dramatically uncompelling. Want to up the ante? Take to the skies! It’s a strategy as reliable as the laws of aerodynamics. Whether we’re talking Harrison Ford’s Air Force One , or last year’s Idris Elba miniseries Hijack , the simple setup of a hero, a plane, and a situation is all you really need. But why is it that aeroplanes make such fertile settings for adventure?

On the one hand, we have the claustrophobia of the aircraft itself. Staging action within the confines of a plane cabin creates an almost theatrical sense of time and place. There are hard boundaries over where characters can go and what they can do that immediately up the stakes of the situation. (This holds true even in something like Red Eye , which regularly cuts away to apposite drama back on UK soil involving intelligence boss Lesley Sharp.)

But unlike, say, a film set entirely within a warehouse, or a mansion, an aeroplane is also a dynamic environment. There is peril inherent just from the mere fact of being 40,000ft in the air, travelling at 500mph. In real life, the chances of a plane you’re on crash landing are pretty negligible; in the world of action cinema, planes tend to drop from the sky like gnats from an electric lamp. “These things go down! These things go down!” squawks Charles Grodin in 1988’s Midnight Run , trying to convince Robert DeNiro of his fear of flying. In the world of film and TV, at least, he wasn’t so very wrong.

A plane setting is basically a locked-room story in which the stakes are EXTREMELY high. Tense, potentially violent characters packed into a rocket-fast metal box with no way out. It’s a hard formula to mess up.

The fundamental appeal of Red Eye is not so very far removed from, say, Nicolas Cage’s Con Air , or 2005’s Flightplan , the Jodie Foster thriller written, as it happens, by Red Eye creator Peter A Dowling. But that’s not to say the genre hasn’t changed with the times.

It could be said that the airborne thriller has undergone two great sea changes over the decades. The first came in 1980, with the release of the hit parody film Airplane! . Such was the sheer eviscerating silliness of the comedy that it completely obliterated the subject of its parody, and put a kibosh on the sort of melodramatic disaster movies that had previously defined the genre. For two decades, Hollywood focused on grittier, less conventional aeroplane narratives, films such as 1992’s Passenger 57 , or 1997’s Air Force One . And then, in 2001, two hijacked planes flew into the World Trade Center, and air travel became an entirely different proposition overnight. The danger was no longer far-fetched or titillating, and Hollywood largely opted to tread carefully around the imagery of air travel – fronting either reverent tales of true-life heroism (as in the 9/11 docudrama United 93 ) or silly genre exercises that could not be mistaken for reality (Samuel L Jackson’s hallucinatory Snakes on a Plane ).

The emergence of TV series such as Hijack and Red Eye – as well as films such as the 2023 Gerard Butler thriller Plane – suggests that Hollywood has moved out of this post-9/11 mindset. Planes are free to be toyed with again, turned into arenas of violent spectacle. Gone too is any real sense of reality; in the first episode of Red Eye , Armitage is able to sprint around an airport causing mayhem, indulging behaviour that would in real life see him shot or tasered within seconds. Or at the very least barred from Heathrow Wetherspoons.

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Red Eye won’t be a classic of the genre. It won’t even be the best-known Red Eye – that honour belongs to the 2005 plane-set thriller starring Cillian Murphy and Rachel McAdams. The ITV series seems to have flown from my mind before the wheels even touched down. But as a reminder of just how much value can be wrung from a premise, it’s illuminating. All you need is two wings, an engine and a cabin full of jeopardy – and then we have lift off.

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Red Eye: Season 1 Reviews

The longer it goes on, the sillier Red Eye gets.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | May 6, 2024

Still, there’s just enough to keep you guessing. Red Eye takes itself seriously, but you don’t have to.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | May 3, 2024

As thrillers go, Red Eye sits on the part of the spectrum that houses Air Force One, with occasional blasts of Airplane! It’s Sunday night ludicrous, but enjoyably so, and you learn a thing or two as well.

Full Review | May 3, 2024

It works, ticks along, none of the plot holes really matter. You will enjoy this. You will also have forgotten it within a month.

So far this flight from hell is entertaining, tense and obviously daft.

Nolan is played by Richard Armitage who’s good at bumptious and excellent at priggish.

Full Review | Apr 30, 2024

Ineffably silly though it all is, this six-parter hurtles along at the speed of an intercontinental airliner. I'm along for the whole ride.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 30, 2024

While some of the performances are halfhearted enough to recall a jet-lagged flight attendant doing a safety demonstration, it’s hard to blame the cast when they’re saddled with leaden dialogue that leaves no room for subtlety.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Apr 30, 2024

Red Eye’s script has a just-add-boiling-water feel, as though it were made from the dried remains of countless other dramas.

Full Review | Apr 29, 2024

ITV’s new thriller, Red Eye, has many similarities with the real thing. For the uninitiated, red eyes are long haul overnight flights. Usually, they’re drawn-out, boring affairs. Well, the same applies to the show.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Apr 29, 2024

Part whodunnit, part conspiracy thriller -- wholly ludicrous.

Red Eye: release date, cast, plot, trailer, interviews, episode guide and everything we know

Red Eye is a tense thriller series set on a passenger flight from London to China which stars Richard Armitage, Jing Lusi and Lesley Sharp.

Red Eye is a thriller starring Richard Armitage and Jing Lusi.

Red Eye is an edge-of-your-seat thriller series set on an overnight "red-eye" flight from London's Heathrow to Beijing in China, which sees Fool Me Once and Spooks actor Richard Armitage as a doctor drawn into a terrifying conspiracy. Please note you can watch the whole series now on ITVX!

Red Eye episode 1 recap Red Eye episode 2 recap Red Eye episode 3 recap Red Eye episode 4 recap Red Eye episode 5 recap Red Eye ending explained How to watch Red Eye online

Richard is playing Dr Matthew Nolan, a medic accused of committing a murder in Beijing and forced to return to China on an overnight flight to face charges.

Crazy Rich Asians star Jing Lusi plays DC Hana Li, the London officer who reluctantly accompanies him, and Lesley Sharp plays the head of M15, who becomes drawn into an international conspiracy.

“I’m excited to be boarding Red Eye alongside Jing Lusi. This action-packed espionage thriller is one of the best scripts I have read in a long time,” says Richard Armitage, while his co-star Jing Lusi adds: “Red Eye marks a turning point in British Asian representation, and I am beyond thrilled and proud to be leading this series alongside the wonderful Richard Armitage.”

So here's everything you need to know about ITV1's six-part thriller Red Eye , which is getting decent reviews...

Red Eye release date

The six-part thriller Red Eye premiered on ITV1 from Sunday April 21 2024 at 9pm with weekly episodes at the same time. If you can't wait for the weekly episodes, the six-part series is now available as a box set on ITVX .

Red Eye will also be on STV and STV Player. It will be shown on STAN in Australia. If there's an air date and channel for the US we'll be sure to let you know.

Is there a trailer for Red Eye?

Yes there's a trailer now for Red Eye , which shows just how tense this flight is going to be. Take a look below...

Red Eye plot

In Red Eye , Dr Matthew Nolan (Richard Armitage) attends a medical conference in Beijing and shortly before his flight home is involved in a car crash that almost kills him.

As he lands at Heathrow, a shocked Nolan is arrested for the murder of the woman who was in the car he crashed. But, despite his exhaustion, a confused Nolan is adamant that he was driving alone.

Nolan is sent back to China to face charges and is accompanied by DC Hana Li (Jing Lusi), who is none too impressed by the assignment or Nolan himself. But when there’s a death on board, Hana realises she’s embroiled in an escalating conspiracy.

Back home her sister, journalist Jess (Jemma Moore) is conducting her own investigation into Nolan’s extradition while the head of M15, Madeline Delaney risks her career to keep Hana and Nolan alive and expose the conspiracy that seems to implicate both China and those in her own government.

It's a tense flight from London to China in Red Eye.

Here's our guide to the six episodes of Red Eye ...

Episode 1 Drunk and disoriented Dr Matthew Nolan (Richard Armitage) races through the streets of Beijing and crashes his car. He's injured as he catches a flight home to the London, but then to his shock he is detained at the airport and accused of murder. DC Hana Li (Jing Lusi) is assigned to escort Nolan back to Beijing on the next North China Air flight. When a group of Nolan’s colleagues land at Heathrow, they’re asked to return and give witness statements. MI5 director Madeleine Delaney (Lesley Sharp) is leading the operation, keeping close communication with Chinese Minister Tang and the British Prime Minister. She must tread carefully, as a Chinese-British nuclear deal could be at risk. CIA officer Mike Maxwell is also helping on the sidelines. Meanwhile, Nolan tries to escape police custody at the airport and videos of him publicly declaring his innocence go viral. Hana’s sister and aspiring reporter Jess Li sees the video and jumps at the opportunity of a story. On the flight, an incident onboard shakes everyone. Nolan believes he’s being framed.

Episode 2 When Dr Matthew Nolan first told DC Hana Li he was being extradited to China for a crime he didn’t commit, she didn’t believe him! Yet as suspicious things continue happening on their night flight to Beijing, she starts to wonder if he’s telling the truth. This week, one of his colleagues is found dead....

Episodes 3 to 6 We'll be updating as the series progresses so do check back.

Dr Matthew Nolan gets arrested in episode 1.

Red Eye cast — Richard Armitage on playing Dr Matthew Nolan

Richard Armitage plays Dr Nolan, who is accused of murder.

Richard says: "I got the script with [writer] Peter Dowling's name on it and I remembered watching this brilliant film he made with Jodie Foster called Flightplan. I was slightly obsessed with it at the time, I just loved the scale of the aeroplane and the fact that the whole movie was set on this labyrinthine beast in the air. When I read the Red Eye synopsis, I realised that he was taking inspiration from that movie and expanding it into a six-part series, and I thought the idea of setting such a claustrophobic story on a night flight was just brilliant.

"I liked the challenge of playing somebody of Nolan’s status and intellect, being thrown into a prisoner situation where he has no authority. In a way, the aeroplane is its own little democracy because he's not on any country’s soil, so he's thrown to the lions. I thought it would be really interesting to see somebody like him realising that he needs to fight for his freedom.

"After I read the first two episodes I just really hoped the show was going in the direction I thought, and actually it went much further, which was brilliant. I love the fact that the scale opens up and we find ourselves dealing with an international problem working up to a big finale. It’s always frustrating when dramas have a disappointing ending, but this is great. So much so that I want more, it was so delicious I’d love to see these characters thrown back into another political situation for a second season.

"We wanted to shoot the whole sequence in real time as far as possible, although I know in real life they would spend longer on the compressions, so our version was slightly contracted. I worked with a medic to just make sure we were using the defibrillator machine correctly. I was filming with a real person, so I couldn’t really do CPR on him because I didn’t want to break his ribs, but I wanted it to be as authentic as possible. Again we didn't overrehearse it, because we wanted to get real reactions out of the background artists, who didn’t know what was going to happen, I love working like that. You want it to feel as real as possible because the drama itself is heightened. There’s a high body count in quite a short amount of time (10 hour Red- Eye) , it reminded me of Agatha Christie’s ‘And Then There Were None’ but set on an aeroplane. There are a lot of shocking moments as the story unfolds and you have to lean into the reality of them. It was really nice that we could shoot most of the scenes in order, which is unusual, but when you’ve got full control over an entire set like the plane you can do that. And then once we get off the plane the story takes a different course."

* Richard Armitage previously starred as Lucas North in the BBC spy drama Spooks and played Guy of Gisborne in BBC One drama Robin Hood . He’s also had roles in Strike Back, The Hobbit, Captain America: The First Avenger, Ocean’s Eight , The Stranger and Stay Close .

Jing Lusi on playing DC Hana Li

Jing Lusi plays the detective Hana who takes Nolan on the red eye flight back to China.

Jing Lusi says: "Hana is spirited and authentic. She’s a real human, who is flawed, but not in a really obvious way – some characters in drama can feel quite extreme. Of course, these people exist in society, but often they seem to be the only ones that are portrayed on screen. For me, Hana is more like your everyday woman, who has her own struggles and her own history, but she feels very relatable."

"I thought the scripts were brilliant. Total page turners and very clever. I loved the character, the concept, the intrigue, and I was desperate to know what happened next. I was delighted at the prospect of playing Hana. She’s a complete breath of fresh air. I have never seen an Asian character portrayed so realistically and genuinely in a British show before. Hana is a regular girl, doing her job, minding her own business when she gets pulled into this insane story. I am so happy to not only see an Asian character portrayed like this, but even more so that I got to play her.

"When we filmed Crazy Rich Asians , the whole cast felt that needle turning moment. I had exactly the same feeling when I read the scripts for Red Eye . And when we were filming, it was as simple as seeing so many Asian faces around me, doing their jobs, getting on with it. It sounds mundane and ordinary, but actually it is extraordinary, because you never get to see that. So frequently the Asian character is tokenistic, or fits certain stereotypes like the comic relief or the serious scientist. It was very moving to see this array of amazing Asian talent, all there for a reason that wasn’t box ticking. I truly feel Red Eye is a turning point.

" Red Eye is a fantastic, refreshingly original story and I certainly haven’t read scripts like this before. I hope the audience is captivated. Even though it's a thriller, it’s very character driven, so there is a lot for the audience to invest in emotionally. For me, the most exciting part is that this is going to be a real watershed moment in British Asian representation. We're seeing a wealth of successful Asian-fronted shows and films in America now, but we have yet to see this in the UK, until now. I believe this is the beginning of something really amazing and important. I hope the audience will embrace and enjoy this show as much as we loved making it, and that Red Eye will open the door for more Asians to have a voice and tell their stories."

* Jing Lusi has perviously had roles in Holby City, Crazy Rich Asians, Gangs of London, Man vs Bee , Lucky Man, The Feed and Scott and Bailey .

Lesley Sharp as MI5 boss Madeleine Delaney

Lesley Sharp, who plays M15 chief Madeleine Delaney, says: "Aside from the fact that I thought Delaney was a really compelling character, the script was a real page turner, I was intrigued by what was going to happen next. I thought it was really audacious — individuals in mortal terror, unable to escape because they’re 30,000 feet above ground!

"She’s a woman returning to work after a big moment in her personal life, where what she had taken for granted has been compromised. As she steps back into the work arena she immediately has to deal with this crisis around Nolan and she’s forced to handle this situation against the backdrop of work place politics — other people want her job! She's fighting fires on several fronts in a really controlled and mindful way. She's not someone who loses it easily, she’s very good at keeping it together.

"I think years of training allow people like Delaney to click into a totally focussed mindset. In heightened dramatic situations, They operate in a different way. Our director, Kieron [Hawkes] and I talked about Delaney ‘s back story. We decided she’d been an agent in the field and if necessary would have been a killer. Negotiating with someone who's got the ear of the President of China, and being authorised to give a statement on behalf of the British government is a huge responsibility. She takes it very seriously but wears it lightly. She has risen to the top because she's brilliant at her job, but she's also got a really good, moral, human core, which underpins all of that. She’s one of the good guys.

"I really just hope the series is the visual equivalent of a cracking good page turner, and at the end of every episode I would love people to say, 'Oh my God, what’s going to happen next?' And then either head straight for ITX to binge it all in one go or look forward to the next episode like we all used to…water cooler TV magic."

* Lesley Sharp has previously played Jean in the movie and Disney Plus series The Full Monty and has also starred in Before We Die, Common As Muck, Playing the Field, Clocking Off, Afterlife, The Diary of Anne Frank and Three Girls .

Jemma Moore on playing Jess Li

Red Eye also stars Jemma Moore ( Silent Witness ) who is playing Hana’s sister Jess Li. Jemm says: "When I first saw the character breakdown, I remember thinking this role was written for me – she’s the youngest sibling in the family, she’s working in a career where you constantly have to be pushing yourself... and in the early drafts she was even called Gemma! I saw a lot of myself in her, and in the way she spoke. I liked that she was quite cheeky and playful, but also really headstrong and determined. When I got the scripts I couldn't put them down. I remember having a glass of wine, sitting curled up with my dog and just reading them so quickly, my heart was racing as I turned the pages. I was super excited. I’m 31 and I had honestly never seen two female British East Asian roles written like this before, nothing like this has ever come into my inbox. So besides the scripts being thrilling and the storyline having all these twists and turns, I knew this was going to be a huge moment for my community. It was so exciting to see a super complex, flawed, determined British East Asian character in a story with so many different layers. I knew it was something I had to be a part of, and I told my agents I was going to fight tooth and nail for this role. I wrote a letter to the casting director after my recall audition and told them I had been waiting for a show like this for so long. I said even if I didn’t get the job I just couldn’t wait to watch the series, because it’s going to mean so much.

"When we meet them, Hana and Jess have fallen out because Hana has previously divulged information about her work to Jess, and Jess used that as an opportunity to further her career by selling a story. Hana felt betrayed and Jess is frustrated that Hana doesn’t want to help her more. Although there is tension, Jess also really wants Hana’s approval and these two sisters love each other completely, you see that as the story unfolds. Jess has so much respect for Hana and I think she recognises the difficulties that Hana faces – Jess is the younger sibling, so she hasn’t had as much pressure or expectation on her shoulders. I am a younger child so I'm able to speak to that. Jess is able to speak her mind more, and to make more mistakes without the same judgement from her parents. Jess does forget her privileges in the world sometimes, being mixed race and having that proximity to whiteness, and I think Hana gets frustrated with her for that. It’s a very push-pull relationship between them, but Jess is also fiercely protective of her sister."

Jemma Moore is playing Hana's journalist sister Jess Li.

Who else is starring in Red Eye?

Also in Red Eye , Dan Li is playing Toni Zhang. Daphne Cheung is Mrs Ruan Yue, Oliver Maltman is Dr Stephen Hurst, Jonathan Aris is John Tennant, Mido Hamada is Mike Maxwell, Aidan Cheung plays Mr Hong, Rick Warden is Dr Chris Peele, Dave Wong is Tin Lok Li, Sarah Togood is Elizabeth Burk, Xiangyi Tab is Tiffany Songyun, Elaine Tan is Shen Zhao, Marvia Rivera is Cohen, Sonal Natasha Patel is Nurse Ayesha, Lucianne McEvoy is Dr Kate Ward, Euan Macnaughton is a foreign office official, Steph Lacey is Megan Campbell, Brian Law is a flight attendant, Rebert Gilbert is Simon O'Brian, Cash Holland is Ruth Banks, Jack Colgrave Hirst is Officer Doyle, Cate Hamer is Rachel Li, Ryan Cloud is Daniel Lomax, Thomas Chaanhing is Captain Chen, Chris Anderson is Jenkins and Peter Guiness is Sir George Chapman.

Behind the scenes, locations and more on Red Eye

Some of Red Eye filmed at Stanstead Airport in Essex whioch doubled as Heathrow Airport. Richard Armitage explains: "It was quite a big ordeal! It felt like harking back to my days on Spooks, where they didn't have massive budgets, but they would set up a long lens and we'd dive into very public places. Busy London streets and places like Liverpool Street Station. There were a few background artists secretly positioned around me at Stansted, but there were also lot of real passengers who ended up in the scene too. It was like live theatre but for people that haven't consciously bought a ticket! You have to be sensitive to the public. There were signs up saying filming was in progress, but people aren't really as conscious of their surroundings these days, they're just on their phones. It’s quite delicate filming a scene with actors dressed as armed police!

"We rehearsed what we were going to do in a different corner of the airport, but we only had half an hour’s notice before we could shoot and I knew we only really had one or two chances to get it right. The first time you do it is always the best chance to get real reactions. We wanted it to feel authentic, not staged, so they set up multiple cameras to get the shots. When I watched it back weeks later my heart was still thumping because I just remembered that feeling beforehand, knowing that I couldn’t screw this up and something could go wrong. It was nail-biting."

Red Eye is produced by Sony Pictures Television-backed Bad Wolf, founded in 2015 by Jane Tranter and Julie Gardner. Award-winning producer Julie Gardner ( I Hate Suzie, Doctor Who ) will Executive Produce the series alongside Lachlan MacKinnon ( Industry, A Discovery of Witches ). Fortitude and Power Book IV: Force Director, Kieron Hawkes, will direct all episodes in the series which is produced by Kristian Dench ( The Capture, Strike Back ).

The project has been developed and overseen by Bad Wolf’s Director of Content, Dan McCulloch ( His Dark Materials, Endeavour ). Sony Pictures Television will be responsible for the international distribution of Red Eye .

ITV's head drama commissioner, Polly Hill, says: “ Red Eye is a brilliantly addictive thriller with an international story taking place on the red eye flight from Heathrow to Beijing.

"Thanks to Peter’s scripts, the story will have the audience gripped and continually surprised throughout. It’s got a fantastic cast led by Jing Lusi and Richard Armitage, and we are delighted to be working with Bad Wolf on this exciting new show.”

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A first-class thriller from Wes Craven movie review (2005)
A first-class thriller from Wes Craven. Horror. 85 minutes ‧ PG-13 ‧ 2005. Roger Ebert. August 18, 2005. 4 min read. Cillian Murphy shares a not-so-tender "mile-high" moment with Rachel McAdams in Wes Craven's "Red Eye." Wes Craven 's "Red Eye" is movie that wants to be a good thriller, and moves competently, even relentlessly, toward ...
Red Eye: Wes Craven's flight from hell is piloted brilliantly from
The Guardian Australia. Red Eye: Wes Craven's flight from hell is piloted brilliantly from start to end. 2024-06-20 - Kevin Bui. By the time of his death in 2015, Wes Craven's reputation as one of the finest film-makers of his kind was firmly cemented. The horror maestro had a knack for transforming schlocky material into A-grade ...
What are your thoughts on Red Eye? : r/movies
Red Eye is a type of movie I wished Hollywood would go back to, a short thriller that is simple and effective. Simple and effective movies seem to have disappeared from Hollywood in the past 10 years. I agree. It's a pretty mediocre movie that has actors I enjoy who performed well.
Sticking Out a Tense Flight With a Terrorist as Seatmate
"Red Eye" is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). The film contains violence courtesy of a pen, a stiletto heel, a large knife, a larger truck and guns. Red Eye Opens today nationwide.
Is Red Eye A Good Movie?
Released in 2005, the film received positive reviews from critics and fans of Craven's work, resulting in 80% and 64% scores from the critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, where its Critics Consensus reads, "With solid performances and tight direction from Wes Craven, Red Eye is a brisk, economic thriller." Red Eye was also a box office ...
Red Eye (2005 American film)
Red Eye is a 2005 American psychological thriller film directed by Wes Craven and written by Carl Ellsworth based on a story by Ellsworth and Dan Foos. It stars Rachel McAdams, Cillian Murphy, and Brian Cox.The story follows a hotel manager ensnared in an assassination plot by a terrorist while aboard a red-eye flight to Miami.. The film score was composed and conducted by Marco Beltrami.
Red Eye Review
McAdams makes an engaging and admirably resourceful heroine, while a typically impressive Murphy proves he doesn't need a sack-cloth shroud and fear serum to scare — his ice-blue eyes, cold ...
Review: Red Eye
Review: Red Eye. Red Eye is a model of efficiency, shrouded in a veil of secrecy. by Ed Gonzalez. August 16, 2005. One of the ingenious promos for Red Eye sets up the film as just another Hollywood rom-com, with Rachel McAdams and Cillian Murphy batting eyelashes at each other in the check-in lines and waiting areas of an airport terminal. But ...
Red Eye 2005, directed by Wes Craven
Murphy and McAdams give their best performances yet, and there's some leavening humour from first-time actor Jayma Mays as ditzy trainee hotel manager Cynthia, who becomes Lisa's eyes and ears ...
Red Eye TV review
Dr Matthew Nolan (Richard Armitage) finds himself accused of killing a well-connected woman on his last night in the Chinese capital — an allegation he vehemently denies. But with the UK ...
Red Eye review: Richard Armitage is yet another mysterious stranger in
Red Eye is anchored by some rather vapid geopolitics - China is negotiating to build nuclear power plants on British soil, so the craven government consents to Nolan's ad hoc extradition ...
Red Eye Movie Review
Our review: Parents say (5 ): Kids say (16 ): An entertaining, mostly smart scary movie, Wes Craven 's RED EYE effectively updates the slasher flick to address current fears. The monster here is no lumbering and disfigured nightmare, but instead an attractive, slightly built mercenary -- a terrorist for hire.
Red Eye Review
Buckle up for a heavy dosage of turbulence, a complex conspiracy and a couple of overly righteous customers in Wes Craven's incredibly effective 2005 thriller, Red Eye. 90 minutes of claustrophobic hell that is among the upper echelons of the thriller genre. Lisa Reisert (Rachel McAdams), in the midst of grief and major familial upheaval, finds herself an unwilling cog in a major political ...
Red Eye
So when her red-eye flight back home to Miami is delayed, she's happy to be distracted from her fear by the charming Jackson Rippner, whom she meets while waiting in line. The two continue their flirting over drinks and, lo and behold, end up seated next to each other on the plane. Once the cabin door is locked, however, everything changes.
Red Eye (2005)
Red Eye: Directed by Wes Craven. With Rachel McAdams, Cillian Murphy, Brian Cox, Laura Johnson. Lisa on her flight to Miami befriends Jackson who turns out to be a terrorist. Holding her hostage, he forces her to help him assassinate the United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security.
Red Eye Review: ITV Thriller Starts Silly, Gets Great
Thriller fans, prepare to board. 20 minutes in to Red Eye, a foot chase through Heathrow airport ends with a man making an impassioned plea outside a branch of Leon. He vaults over barriers like ...
Red Eye takes TV's most reliably exciting premise and makes it nearly
On paper, the series should be impossible to sit through. Yet, as Nick Hilton writes in The Independent 's two-star review, Red Eye is "just about watchable - if only in the way that the in ...
VOD film review: Red Eye
Find a film on-demand. Netflix UK reviews . Amazon Prime UK reviews. New Netflix UK releases. New on Amazon Prime Video UK. New on Disney+ UK. New on Apple TV+ UK. New on BritBox UK. UK streaming recommendations. 007 streaming guide. Game of Thrones: How to watch online. UK TV air dates. UK TV: This month's highlights. UK VOD releases. Best of ...
Red Eye: Season 1
Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 30, 2024. Dan Einav Financial Times. TOP CRITIC. While some of the performances are halfhearted enough to recall a jet-lagged flight attendant doing a ...
Red Eye (British TV series)
Red Eye is a six-part British thriller television series, created by Peter A Dowling and starring Jing Lusi, Richard Armitage and Lesley Sharp. It premiered on ITV1 and ITVX on 21 April 2024. ... Lucy Mangan of The Guardian awarded the first episode three stars out of five, ...
Red Eye: release date, cast, plot, trailer, interviews, episode guide
Red Eye release date. The six-part thriller Red Eye premiered on ITV1 from Sunday April 21 2024 at 9pm with weekly episodes at the same time. If you can't wait for the weekly episodes, the six-part series is now available as a box set on ITVX. Red Eye will also be on STV and STV Player. It will be shown on STAN in Australia.

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