Disturbia (2007)

*Rear Window* all over again

If you remembered and liked Hitchcock's *Rear Window*, then you'll like *Disturbia*. Of course, IMHO, *Rear Window* is better.

Kale is under house arrest, strapped with an electronic ankle bracelet. His widowed mother has taken away his privileges, which is just about every electronics that a teenager can't live without (iPod, gaming systems, etc.) So, what's a boy to do? He can only have so much fun with a pair of binoculars.

On one side of his house, he spies on his hot neighbor, Ashley, and soon develops a friendship. On the other side, he spies his enigmatic, new neighbor, which he soons suspects that he's a serial killer. With the help of Ashley's and another friend, he investigates to see if his hunch is correct.

I found *Disturbia* to be simplistic, yet suspenseful. It's still an enjoyable film but I'd rather watch *Rear Window*. September 2, 2008

Awesome Film and Awesome LaBeouf

This film is great. To have a thriller done without gore and with actual suspense, quality acting is rare these days. At first glance one assumes the film caters to the teen age group but it is a film for everyone. Adults will enjoy this just as much.

Shia LaBeouf started with independent films and this was his first high profile film. He is the star and he shines here. The film rests on his shoulders and how his character deals with all that occurs to him. He provides a fully drawn out, three dimensional interpretation with a lot on his plate. We understand how he got to be on house arrest and we care. His character is real, a true teenager - he is intelligent, sarcastic and loves the ladies. In other words you must believe in this person for the premise of the movie to make sense and Shia carries this off with flying colors.

Comparisons to Hitchcock make sense but the familiar theme is done in a new and original way. I must admit that when I first saw the film I really enjoyed it but found the ending a little subpar. Upon second viewing it all clicked for me and I thoroughly loved it and loved getting caught up in the slowly building suspense and quality acting.

I must reiterate how rare it is to have a suspense film without gore and it works here very succesfully. The characters carry it and you will be on the edge of your seat. You will also ask yourself how much should you really want to know about your neighbors.

I am 47 and recommend it for all adults who love quality suspense and Shia LaBeouf is a definite rising star to keep your eye on. August 27, 2008

Why not to become a peeping Tom

After the death of Kale's father in a car accident (in which Kale was driving) he falls behind in school. Later, back in school, he punches a teacher who mentions his father. Kale is then put under house arrest with an ankle bracelet to track his movement. His mother disconnects his iTunes, computer games, and TV, so Kale passes his time by spying on all his neighbors, including the new and very beautiful girl next door, Ashley.

Ashley comes by to make friends with Kale and his best friend Ronnie, and gets into the spying game with them. Then Kale notices some strange things going on with the neighbor who lives behind Ashley, a odd man who lives alone. Kale thinks he sees the neighbor brutalizing a woman in his house, and suspects a bag in his garage to contain a body. He becomes so paranoid he even sends Ronnie over to the house, then fearful for Ronnie he breaks his house arrest (for the second time) to run to Ronnie's aid.

The neighbor, played by the extremely talented David Morse (The Long Kiss Goodnight, The Rock, The Green Mile) is cordial and courteous to the police as they take Kale back home. Then Kale's mother goes next door to ask that he not press any charges against Kale. Kale snaps. Has Kale gone off the deep end from cabin fever, or is what Kale has seen real?

While the movie starts out a bit slow, the tension will slowly build as Kale's paranoia grows. A typical plotline is saved by Morse's great acting. One thing I didn't like is the filming of the ending scenes; they were filmed in such darkness that its hard to tell exactly what's going on and who is where in the room. Not a bad movie, but not the best either. Rent instead of buy. Enjoy!
August 22, 2008

Disturb in Suburbia

"Disturbia", or should I say "Disturb in Suburbia", directed by D.J. Caruso and influenced by Alfred Hitchcock's "Rear Window", is a very tense thriller, that despite the fact it doesn't bring anything new to the genre, thanks to its misterious atmosphere and genuine comedy, it succeeds in every aspect.

Under the tagline "Every killer lives next door to someone", we go to the movies on a Friday night, we pick a seat, start eating our popcorns and prepare ourselves to enjoy a horror/suspense movie. It's been 30 minutes since it started and we don't see the `horror' part coming. We feel like if we're watching a remake of "The Girl Next Door", which is acceptable for the `average audience' but suspense fans start to wonder "Will the scares ever start?". After a romantic comedy set-up, D.J. Caruso brings us some of the bad color when we see some blood stains on a window, with some screaming of a woman in the background. Is in that moment when we get that breaking point we've all been waiting for.

With some effective jump-out-of-your-seat scares, a typical cat and mouse game between protagonist-antagonist and a soundtrack that give you chills, in the hand of Geoff Zanelli, lead `Disturbia' to an excellent climax that is followed by a predictable ending, appreciating the fact that it's not ruined by a `surprise twist' we've seen lately in psychological thrillers that most of the time are not well-executed. This makes `Disturbia' a film that appeals to all audiences, no matter how old you are.

Taking away the fact that we feel like we're watching a chick flick in the first act, its third one compensates everything else, leaving everyone satistied, from horror-suspense fans to those who don't need to watch liters of blood on a screen to feel fear. With an excellent performance from Shia LaBeouf as the typical suburban teen and a nice mixture of genres hard to put together, turn `Disturbia' in 105 minutes of suspense, drama, comedy and mistery that everyone will enjoy, mostly if it is accompanied by a tower of Twinkies...

Rating: 4.5/5
August 7, 2008

Not Great, But Fun for the Most Part

As a fan of suspense films, this little movie caught my eye when it was released in theaters April 13, 2007. Disturbia stars Shia LaBeouf as Kale, a teenager who is placed on house arrest after striking a teacher in school. His outlash was the latest on many that occured in the months following his father's death.

After his mother disables his technology (iTunes subscription & X-Box Live), he turns to spying on his neighbors to pass the time. This voyeurism leads to his paranoid thinking that one of his neighbors just might be a notorious serial killer. Stuck with an ankle monitor that alerts police every time he leaves his yard, he's stuck watching his murderous neighbor carry out what might be a series of murders. Throughout the course of the action, he develops a crush on neighbor Ashley (Sarah Roemer) and is helped along the way by his class clown friend Ronnie (Aaron Yoo), his link to life outside his house-arrest restrictions.

Disturbia has some good chills and a few scenes will make you jump out of your seat. In the end, it devolves into pretty familiar territory with basic slasher-film style suspense, as Kale tries to take down his neighbor (played by David Morse) and solve the mystery without ever leaving his yard.

At the end of the film I found myself feeling as if I had just watched a longer "serial killer" episode of a typical television procedural, such as Criminal Minds or CSI. The first two thirds leave you wanting more and sets you up pretty good before the typical killer-chases-Scooby-Doo-like-gang ending. However, the film does most of this in a pretty stylish way.

Disturbia opened at #1 when it premiered at the box office with $23 million, which quickly covered it's $20 million production price tag. It stayed in the top spot for the next two weeks. Comparisons and inspirations for this film are drawn mostly from Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, and comparisons have also been struck between the movie posters for both films. The Burbs is also mentioned as an inspiration.

The most memorable aspect of Disturbia may be the casting of rising star Shia LaBeouf, who just months later would star in Michael Bay's Transformers.

([...]) August 2, 2008

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