Disturbia Review
Posted by Jacob Ziegler on 04.13.2007
Another Hitchcock remake...
DISTURBIA
April 13, 2007
Kale: Shia LaBeouf
Ashley: Sarah Roemer
Turner: David Morse
Julie: Carrie-Anne Moss
Ronnie: Aaron Yoo
Paramount Pictures presents a film directed by DJ Caruso. The screenplay is by Christopher Landon and Carl Ellsworth; story by Landon. The running time is 105 minutes. It is rated PG-13 on appeal for sequences of terror and violence, and some sensuality.
BY JACOB ZIEGLER, 411Movies
Alfred Hitchcock movies have always been ripe for picking off by directors that have followed him; the list of films that are direct remakes or inspired by his movies is a long one. In 2007, director DJ Caruso adds “Disturbia,” which was inspired by 1954’s “Rear Window,” one of my favorite Hitchcock movies.
The funny thing is that a majority of the target audience of “Disturbia” will not know anything about Hitchcock, nor will they care. “Disturbia” is aimed firmly at the age group that isn’t quite old enough to get into R-rated movies without a parent or guardian. Shia LaBeouf (“The Greatest Game Ever Played”) and Sarah Roemer (“The Grudge 2”) play good looking teenagers that should look nice on the magazine covers.
It may sound like I’m totally bashing “Disturbia,” but I actually kind of enjoyed it, to a point. Instead of our hero being confined by a wheelchair as Jimmy Stewart was in “Window,” LaBeouf’s Kale plays a trouble teenager sentenced to house arrest, so his ankle bracelet keeps him within the confines of his yard.
It’s too bad he can’t move around because once he’s confined to his house and his inordinately hot mother Julie (Carrie-Anne Moss of “Memento”) takes all his “toys” away, he starts to notice some interesting things coming from the neighbor Turner’s (David Morse, recently seen on “House” opposite Hugh Laurie) house. He beings spying on him, trying to catch him doing something suspicious
Luckily Kale’s best friend Ronnie (Aaron Yoo, TV’s “The Bedford Diaries”) is malleable enough to try any crazy thing Kale suggests, and sexy neighbor girl Ashley (Roemer) takes an interest in both Kale and Turner, so he has plenty of backup to do his spying. Ronnie is not nearly as relaxed as Kale is, but then Ronnie is the one actually going into the suspected murderer’s house while Kale watches on with binoculars. Ashley takes a little more time to convince; and it takes even a little longer for Kale to convince her to make out with him. Oh, to be a teenager again.
“Disturbia” primarily follows the conventions of most suspense/horror movies, such as bad guys moving long distances in short amounts of time, and some other bits that some may construe as spoilers so I will not go into detail on them. The film at least gets to the level of “entertaining” based on the performance of Shia LaBeouf. He has proven that he can carry a drama (“The Greatest Game Ever Played”) and he does a good job carrying the movie here. It’s not a role that required a lot of reaching, but his confidence and charisma are enough to elevate the mediocre material just a little bit; not unlike Mark Wahlberg did for “Shooter.” Hopefully LaBeouf can get a few more hits under his belt before moving on to some more serious projects to start building up his credibility as an actor.
“Disturbia” probably won’t stick around in your brain very long, but it’s reasonably fun enough for a short distraction on a weekend night.
The 411: Shia LaBeouf shines in this standard PG-13 thriller fare that should be a big hit with the 14-17 year olds. Older viewers will appreciate the nods to “Rear Window;” not that this remake is anywhere close to being in the same league as its inspiration. It’s not saying too much to surmise that this will probably be the best movie released this weekend.
