Review: Disturbia (2007)

[Jerry Saravia]

DISTURBIA (2007)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
RATING: Two stars

If "Disturbia" was made without "Rear Window" as its inspiration, I
might have still found fault with this mediocre thriller. "Disturbia"
tries to be a modern-day "Rear Window" knockoff, but it lets its
tricks out of the bag too soon, with middling, predictable results.

Shia LaBeouf, a fast-rising young actor, is Kale, a troubled high-
school teenager who is still grappling with his father's death by car
crash (the only truly intense scene in the entire movie). He is so
distraught that the mere mention of his father's name by his Spanish
teacher gives him justification to knock him out. This lands Kale in a
three-month house arrest, though that may not be the worst of it. His
mother (Carrie-Anne Moss) has canceled his X-Box game account and cut
the cord to his bedroom TV (he still has a computer and an iPod, so
all is not lost). In order to kill time, Kale looks through his
binoculars, observing his neighbors, including the young attractive
blonde (Sarah Roemer), who could pass for Jessica Biel, who moves in
next door. But something disturbing is happening across the street. A
certain Mr. Turner (David Morse) may have been responsible for the
disappearance of women around town. He has the same Mustang with the
same dented bumper that the newspapers describe at the scene of the
kidnappings, and carries around bloody bags to his garage!

"Disturbia" moves at a fast enough pace but it rings hollow by the the
time we get to a climax right out of Leatherface's digs. For one, Kale
is a little one-dimensional for my tastes. Here is a kid who loses his
father, adopts an ankle bracelet for his house arrest, and his biggest
regret is that he can't play X-Box. Of course, he gets to kiss the
blonde girl and does some smart detective work but the movie never
quite establishes his character convincingly enough - he is just a
clumsy kid who gets into trouble. Shia certainly has presence and
gives a decent enough performance, but he has little to work with.

Carrie-Anne Moss appears only when the script requires her to, which
is mostly berating her son for going past his boundaries. Sarah Roemer
as the girl could easily have drifted in from that reality show, "The
Hills" - her character is simply the anonymous kind you forget. As for
David Morse, let's just say that it will be no surprise to anyone what
this seemingly cold-blooded neighbor is up to. From his first
introduction behind a wooden fence with a rabbit, all level of
suspense is thrown out the window.

"Disturbia" may be acceptable fare to some but, for myself, I've seen
better. In the way of suspense, thrills and mounting tension,
"Disturbia" is certainly no "Rear Window" or any of its derivations,
including the underrated "Bedroom Window." It is definitely no "Fright
Night," a certainly different genre piece, but the peeping tom aspect
of spying on your neighbors is the same. "Disturbia" could've been
infused with more of a kick in the character and thriller departments.
By the time it ends, you'll find it more disposable than disturbing.

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