Автор: Duane Dudek

Red Eye star sees his characters being as deep as his gaze.

Cillian Murphy had something in his eye. And considering that he is well-known for his eyes, this is worth noting.

Hidden from the bright sun in a hotel courtyard behind oversized brown sunglasses, Murphy's eyes had caught a flash of movement at the periphery the way a deer senses a predator. And sure enough, lurking fans or perhaps paparazzi had just enough sightline to fire off some photos.

Their presence so distracted him during an interview at the Toronto International Film Festival that he changed seats to frustrate them. But even resettled, he remained aware of the now unseen presence, and beneath his thoughtful and conversational demeanor, part of him seemed skittish and ready to bolt.

If the eyes are portals to the soul, Murphy's offer a glimpse into a deep and ice-blue place. His "cool blue eyes" may be the most frightening image in the thriller Red Eye, says the Journal Sentinel's Piet Levy in his review of the film. Earlier this summer, Murphy also played a mad scientist in Batman Begins.

It's "fair enough" that American audiences know him best for these bad-guy roles because that's all they've seen, Murphy said. Born in Cork, Ireland, the 29-year-old actor speaks with a musical lilt; his first name is pronounced "Kill-ian."

But the characters he plays in Batman Begins and Red Eye "are very different" and are part of his quest to "insist on a diversity of roles," Murphy said.

He was first seen by American audiences as a plague survivor in Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later..., and he is filming Boyle's latest, Sunshine, a science-fiction film set in the near future.

Murphy's most challenging role to date is his latest in Neil Jordan's Breakfast on Pluto, being shown at the Toronto festival. The film, based on the novel by Patrick McCabe, tells the picaresque adventures of a youth abandoned at birth who is searching for his mother and turns to transvestism during the journey.

While its themes of transvestism and political violence in Ireland parallel those Jordan dealt with in The Crying Game, this time, the director said, the transvestism is not sexual but about one person "through disguise finding a more coherent version of himself. It's about one person constructing a character for themselves that allows them to survive."

Murphy said he wanted the character to be "feminine" and not "effeminate": "Feminine is something you have naturally, and effeminate is an affectation."

His eyes were surely an asset toward that end. People often remark on his eyes, he said, "but for me it's hard to comment on because I just use them for looking through. All my family has the same eyes...."

"I suppose if it's considered an asset, you should use it. It's never been seen as a disadvantage. It never did Paul Newman any harm."

With that, Murphy got up, went toward the still-lurking photographer, and signed an autograph.