Editor's Note: The following contains the topic of sexual assault
In her legendary career, Sally Field has consistently defied expectations in her acting work. Initially finding fame as a TV star with The Flying Nun, her success on the big screen bounced between Burt Reynolds’s love interest in the Smokey and the Bandit films and her Oscar-winning performances in Norma Rae and Places in the Heart. Firmly established as a seasoned icon in the ‘90s, Field performed her darkest role in John Schlesinger’s 1996 thriller, Eye for an Eye.
Based on the 1993 novel by Erika Holzer, the revenge genre picture marked a sharp departure for Field after years of playing strong, reliable role model characters. As a grieving mother seeking justice for the brutal murder of her daughter at the hands of Kiefer Sutherland’s home invader, Field’s role is of a morally conflicted woman torn between turning vigilante and allowing the justice system to take its course. Though the film is flawed with paper-thin characters and an unsurprising outcome,Eye for an Eye has found a second life nearly 30 years after its release thanks to its streaming success on Netflix.
Sally Field Elevates 'Eye for an Eye's Predictable Premise
Image via Paramount
Much like Death Wish and the vigilante-related films that came after, Eye for an Eye sees Field playing workaholic graphic designer Karen McCann, a mom of two daughters living alongside her second husband Mack (Ed Harris). When her teenage daughter Julie (Olivia Burnette) is violently raped and killed in the home by grocery delivery driver Robert Doob (Sutherland), the criminal justice system fails the McCanns as technicalities involving DNA samples are a cause for the killer’s dismissal.
Karen and Mack seek help from a victims' support group while struggling to get on with their lives. As Karen follows Doob’s whereabouts, expecting he will strike more victims, she’s drawn to group members associated with an outside vigilante group led by Martin (Keith David) and Sidney (Philip Baker Hall), who encourage her to get a gun and kill Doob. Her obsession with Doob starts to affect her marriage negatively and her relationship with her surviving daughter, Megan, ultimately becoming Doob’s next target.
As in the case of many street-level revenge thrillers, Field enters a transformation from a suburban housewife to an avenging crusader. Though the perspective of a female vigilante was unique for the genre, Eye for an Eye plays more like the original Death Wish novel by Brian Garfield, where its protagonist, Paul Kersey, was depicted as a meek everyman-type rather than a macho figure like Charles Bronson. Field is perfectly cast as someone pleasant and unsuspecting to take self-defense classes and get her hands on a gun to protect her loved ones. She adds her critically-acclaimed gravitas to an otherwise cliché screenplay.
Kiefer Sutherland Scared Children in Real Life After 'Eye for an Eye' Was Released
Where Eye for an Eye falls short as a thriller is the lack of depth and originality in the premise. As talented as director Schlesinger was with complex psychological thrillers such as Marathon Man and Pacific Heights, his direction here is playing expected beats with the system failing the McCanns, a by-the-book cop (Joe Mantegna) with his hands tied, and Karen’s poking at Doob from a distance until he responds. The closest subplot to an actual surprise twist involves Karen’s support group friend Angel (Charlayne Woodard), who gradually starts to learn of her potential actions against Doob while playing to her conscience. When her true backstory is revealed to Karen late in the film, there’s no true payoff for the story’s expected climax.
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The true stand out of Eye for an Eye is Sutherland’s performance as Doob. Sutherland is no stranger to playing villains that audiences loved to hate as early as his breakout role in Stand by Me. Despite the lack of depth for Doob, Sutherland plays the part in full creep mode with zero humility. His performance is so believable that the actor recalled spending the day with his daughter when he scared children and their parents by his mere presence at a Chuck E. Cheese.
Though not a big financial success at the time, with critics such as Roger Ebert slamming the film for being pro-vigilante, Eye for an Eye has proven to be an unlikely crowd-pleaser for viewers at home. As of this writing, the film ranks among the top 10 most viewed on Netflix globally with over 4 million views. Perhaps there’s a shift in culture regarding issues about handling violent crime even if the movie fails to address taking the law into a citizen’s hands in a responsible manner.
Eye for an Eye is available to watch on Netflix in the U.S.
Custom Image by Zanda Rice
Image via Paramount
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