The new action packed film, Eagle Eye, which is directed by DJ Caruso, and produced by Steven Spielberg, raises paranoia about the evils of technology to an all time high.  Given that maintaining personal privacy is a huge concern today, it’s a wonder people don’t have padlocks on their cell phones and personal PCs to keep Big Brother from looking in.  We sat down with the cast to see how working on the film has changed their opinions on the threat of being controlled by everyday technology.

Shia LaBeouf plays the main character, Jerry Shaw, who is being framed as a terrorist receiving odd phone calls demanding he complete dangerous tasks or else.

 “The reality is one in five phone calls you make is recorded. I laughed at the guy who told me that. He was a CIA guy who was working on the show with us, and he proceeded to show me a phone call I had made two years before jumping on this movie. It’s terrifying. The ADT security box at any point could be used against you to frame you for something because there’s a microphone in it. They can listen in. With OnStar in your car, somebody in Arizona could turn your car off, when you’re in Washington, just with a click of a button.  You wouldn’t be able to start your car back up. If you’re on the freeway going 70 mph and your engine just dies out, you’ve no control. I mean that could be deadly.” 

“When DJ came up with it, it was a Sci-Fi idea, it was a fantastical stretch of truth. And now you’re living in a time when that vision is a reality. He’s a forward thinker and he kind of predicted that this would happen, but he wasn’t the only one. I mean Cubric did it too, and many movies have been made like that, movies like Parallax View, where this was happening.  Eagle Eye is like War Games meets Bourne Identity, so it’s in that vein.  It’s Steven and it’s DJ and yeah it’s wild that it really is happening and it’s not this stretch of the imagination, it’s a very tangible, realistic problem.”

Rosario Dawson plays Zoe Perez, a serious government official trying to track down the source of the terrorist calls. 

“To see my character up there and feel like she was definitely part of a really important story that made me walk out and go, ‘maybe I ought to take my battery out of my cell phone.’  So I think it’s an awesome ride, but I also think it touches on some really strong issues. For a thriller, when you walk in the theater, you don’t expect to kind of be left with residual feelings  that actually makes you think on an intellectual level. This is a really smart film, and it really makes you think about what’s happening right now, which is kind of crucial.  They say it is the new Jaws for Steven Spielberg.”

Michelle Monaghan plays Rachel Holloman, a single mom who is framed as a terrorist, who vows to clear her name.

“I am definitely more aware of what’s going on around me. You notice cameras a little bit more, and it makes me question where my information goes when I put it into the computer, who is looking at it, and potentially who could use it against me. I think that’s the great thing. The movie sort of asks that question as opposed to us sort of taking it for granted and saying alright technology helps and benefits us, when potentially it may not.  That’s what I’m kind of asking myself.  I found it fascinating that during the research the producers and writers made sure everything was possible. It is either happening now or it will happen. It’s something that’s tangible and you know that’s very scary. I sort of want to ask Steven what’s going to happen in the next 10 years.  You know if he knows something we don’t know.”

Michael Chiklis plays the US Secretary of Defense, Callister.

“To tell you the truth, I’m not a paranoid person by nature. I’m really not, but I have to say this stuff really got me looking at my cell phone differently, and my computer. I don’t like or feel comfortable with the notion that I’m being watched, listened to, or assessed, you know without my knowledge or consent. You know that every click that you make on your computer, sort of puts you into a group. Google runs searches on what kinds of things you search, and it compartmentalizes you into a particular group. I just don’t like that.  There is something really insidious about it.” 

“Personally even if I’m in a public place and we’re having a conversation, and it’s supposed to be with just you. I don’t want to think that some guy in a booth 3,000 miles away is privy to it, that it’s something he’s been seeing and talking about for quite some time. That is the potential insidious nature of technology. This film is essentially a cautionary tale.  It’s certainly a great aspect of the picture. At the very least I would say to look at technology similar to fire: fire is our friend, it keeps us warm, it cooks our food, but it also can burn us and turn on us and even kill us. So we have to be careful; respectful of it, but not fearful. The two are very different.”