Review of Disturbia (2007) by Harry W — 29 Jun 2014

With a premise familiar of Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window and Shia LaBeouf in the lead, Disturbia sounded like an interesting project.

The thing about Disturbia is that it is more than a straight up thriller film. It is also a teenage drama film which deals with romance and lonliness, although playing them off as subplots while it diverts itself through the main narrative. Most films have to suffer because of this, but Disturbia gets away with it due to the fact that it all plays part in the development of the main character Kale Brecht. It may annoy some viewers, but I found that it managed to work. Although one thing I did find annoying was the way that he ended up under house arrest. The intro of the film has his father dying in a car crash and the film then cutting to a year later where his teacher makes a comment about his dad to which he responds by attacking him. I know for a fact that nobody in their right mind would punch a teacher. Not just that, but also the fact is that the death of the Kale's father has no other effect on him and is not referenced again in the story which makes it pointless, as well as tedious due to the fact that it is not key to the story. It is the same dramatic event from every action or thriller movie ever with countless examples such as Sniper, The Delta Force and Olympus Has Fallen adhering to the same concept. Frankly, the intro scene to Disturbia is one of the most cliche opening elements that are available to cinema and it certainly does not give the film a good start at all. It develops from there, but it just is unnecessary.

After the weak intro scene, Disturbia actually manages to develop. A lot of it is focused around the development of Kale Brecht as he deals with his cabin fever and begins to turn to voyeurism, so in actual fact it follows in the footsteps of Rear Window pretty well. Of course it isn't as good as Rear Window, but nobody could really expect it to be, and for what it's worth, it does a decent job. It isn't likely to have the most appeal to people these days though because it is a teen slasher film with a lot of subtle thrills as it builds up to the climax and progresses, and so the target audiences are potentially going to find themselves bored with the slow pace and the lack of blood and gore. Fans of more classical horror films may enjoy the fact that it takes an old style and mixes it with contemporary elements, and I enjoyed that. I also enjoyed that the film let its intense atmosphere develop after starting with a more lighthearted nature. Everything in Disturbia progresses well at a good pace, and it develops well enough for its atmosphere to build up some real tension. Although at times the thin nature of the premise may throw viewers off, the fact that it has genuine tension to it is what makes it a good film.

Visually, Disturbia proves that it can do a lot with a small budget because it takes place essentially all within a limited setting and is shot with atmospheric cinematography which is also edited at a good pace. It always manages to give viewers a sense of what the characters are feeling, be it interest in being a peeping tom or feeling the fear of potential impending death. Frankly, Disturbia is not a great film, but the fact that it maintains a simply story and stays more focused on building a chilling atmosphere is what makes it a good film. It even has a good soundrack.

The thing that makes it actually worth recommending is the lead performance of Shia LaBeouf. From before he got internationally famous for his role in Transformers, Shia LaBeouf delivers a performance in Disturbia which ties the entire film together. The fact is that it is thoroughly intense due to his ability to express emotions very powerfully through both a tense line delivery and a physicality which suggests that he genuinely feels threatened. His lead performance has a lot of powerful and intense charisma to it and exercises the best talents on offer from Shia LaBeouf. The quality of the tension in his performance is just exceptional and he single handily manages to tie the intense mood of the film into viewers. He makes Kyle Brecht a compelling character and an entertaining lead for Disturbia, and it serves as a terrific front for his leading talents as an actor, and in comparison to his role as Sam Witwicky in the Transformers trilogy, Disturbia actually demands the best of his dramatic skills which he has no problems supplying.

David Morse makes a great antagonist in Disturbia. He is very subtle in the way that he projects the darker elements of his character, but he is clear in how he presents the antagonistic nature of his character. He makes an intimidating and darkly presence who puts up a good fight in the film and captures some naturally villainous tendencies. He has a lot of power in his performance without going over the top, and the intensity in his chemistry with Shia LaBeouf is just spot on. David Morse makes a great addition to the cast in Disturbia and makes for a memorable cast member.

Sarah Roemer is a good cast member in Disturbia because she is attractive and the nature of her chemistry with Shia LaBeour is believable. Carrie-Ann Moss also delivers a good supporting effort, and the performance of Aaron Yoo is great because of his hilarious energy and the friendly presence that he makes on the film.

So despite the negativity of some cliche story elements and a thin premise, Disturbia makes up for it with a lot of genuine thrills and a powerful leading performance from Shia LaBeouf.