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 "Black
'Eye'"
by Scott Mantz
"Eye of the Beholder"
Ashley Judd, Ewan McGregor
Directed by Stephen Elliott
In order for
Hollywood films to shine through at the crowded box office, the
studios often perform what is known as "counter-programming". This
is when a studio releases a film the same weekend as one of its
competitors, but the subject matter between the two films couldn't
be any more different. Hopefully, each film will appeal to a different
audience, and everybody wins. For example, every studio knew to
steer clear of the third weekend in May, when "Star Wars Episode
I: The Phantom Menace" was released, but the very next weekend saw
the arrival of the Julia Roberts starrer "Notting Hill". Thankfully,
both movies appealed to different crowds, and both went on to become
huge box office hits.
Since Super
Bowl weekend is generally not known as a banner weekend for movies,
why not release a film that will appeal to the women who have nothing
to do while their men are glued to their TV sets? Even though it
was filmed way back in early 1998, "Eye of the Beholder", starring
Ashley Judd, should have been just what the doctor ordered, especially
considering Judd's recent success with "Double Jeopardy". Unfortunately,
what starts off with promise degenerates into a frustration, thanks
to sloppy direction, poor characterization, and derivative storytelling.
The Eye (Ewan
McGregor) is a surveillance expert for the British Embassy who takes
his job a little too seriously. After sacrificing everything, including
his wife and daughter, for the sake of his demanding work schedule,
he stumbles upon Joanna Eris (Ashley Judd). She's a certifiable
psychopath with killer interest in every guy she meets, but he becomes
obsessed with her. Voyeurism turns into protectiveness as he becomes
something of a pathetic guardian angel and follows her all over
the country. The question is, how long will he wait before he puts
an end to her killing spree?
If you're watching
the movie and get the feeling that you've seen it all before, that's
because you have. The problem is, it was done better, much better,
the first time around. McGregor's obsession for Judd instantly brings
to mind James Stewart's fascination with Kim Novak in "Vertigo".
McGregor probably consulted with Gene Hackman from "The Conversation"
before stalking Judd with all his cool gadgets. Finally, in a completely
ludicrous move, Genevieve Bujold shows up as Judd's former therapist
in a scene that recalls, of all things, Anne Bancroft's character
from "Point of No Return".
The main problem
with "Beholder" is that director Stephen Elliott takes a few ambitious
approaches, but refuses to follow through with any one of them.
As he descends deeper into madness, McGregor is haunted by images
of his daughter. You instantly make a sympathetic connection to
his character, but this subplot is dropped after the first half
of the movie. When Judd realizes that she is being followed, she
turns the tables on her pursuer. This could have been an interesting
case of the hunter becoming the hunted, but nothing becomes of it.
What I couldn't figure out is, after a few brief encounters with
Judd during his pursuit, how could she not recognize him instantly
by his ugly red jacket?
We all get a
thrill by watching other people go about their lives. Just look
at the packed movie complexes for proof. If we're going to spy on
other people, at least make them interesting. Some people's lives
are more fascinating than others, and judging by "Eye of the Beholder",
the same can be said about movies. Spy on someone else, please,
and get a life.
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