User reviews

Not expecting a masterpiece, I can honest say I was very pleasantly surprised at just how much fun I had watching this movie. While it clearly tries way too hard to be hip, and the staggering amount of product placement serves only to distract, the story serves its purpose of allowing DJ Caruso to pull every trick out of the book, to very satisfying effect.

Shia LaBeouf just about gets by on his charm, but also hints at his ability as an actor, which was firmly cemented through his stunning performance in 'A Guide To Recoginzing Your Saints' last year. His character is nothing new, nor is his predicament, but he remains likable enough and it is hardly difficult to see why he is so taken by his new neighbour, played by the gorgeous Sarah Roemer.

David Morse is appropriately creepy as the neighbourhood nut-job and Carrie Anne Moss, while given little to work with, is fine as LaBeouf's mother.

The story unfolds well, and the red herrings serves to stretch the anticipation until the brutally tense finale. If you're looking for 90 minutes of unabashed, self-indulgent fun, you could do a lot worse than 'Disturbia'.

Disturbia is one of the best PG13 thrillers that I've seen in a long time. After all the other rated PG13 thrillers that have come out in the past six years or so, DJ Caruso, who directed, proves that it has always been possible to make a good suspenseful thriller these days without all the gore.

Shia Labeouf plays Kale Brecht. After witnessing the death of his father in a car accident, he becomes sullen and withdrawn. This leads to him being put under house arrest after he punches out an unsympathetic teacher. Imprisoned in his own house, and unable to go beyond 100 yards, he finds himself turning into a peeping tom and spying on all the neighbors. One of them is the attractive new girl in town named Ashley (Sarah Roemer) and another may be a killer named Mr. Turner (David Morse). With the help of the new girl Ashley, his friend Ronnie (a great comedic turn by Aaron Yoo), Kale goes about investigating Mr. Turner to see if he is the killer or not. The three teenagers use cell phones and the internet as well as video cameras in the investigation, and DJ Caruso shows some of his sly wit by using these same devices in the film to not only investigate the spooky neighbor, but also to create some humor to go along with everything else.

The plot is a familiar one. That would be because the great Alfred Hitchcock used it first with his famous suspense thriller Rear Window. Yes Disturbia is a blatant rip-off of that movie, but it is done with skill, and the acting by all, including Carrie Anne Moss as Kale's mother, was very good. All the characters are likable, and David Morse's turn as the creepy Mr. Turner was well done as well.

Disturbia may not be a great movie, but it is definitely one of the best PG13 thrillers in years. It outshines such horror thrillers as Cursed and Pulse, as well as the recent horror thriller The Messengers. Disturbia also once again proves that you don't need a bunch of gore to make an effective horror thriller. Horror directors take note.

Although this movie is based on the plot of hitchcock's movie "rear window'', it also has it's own merits and some of it's elements were surprising . It's catered to a teen audience.

This movie was extremely well paced -- there was very good character development without excessive dialog. The story is exciting and thrilling: a modernized Rear Window. The acting was very solid, and every actor, major or minor, sold their part. Shia LeBeouf was a likable protagonist, Carrie-Anne Moss did a great job in her role as the mother, and David Morse played an exceedingly ominous and creepy neighbor. The climax is very suspenseful, although it did contain a few minor lapses in rational behavior by both the heroes and the villain, but I suppose that could be written off as desperation. Overall, it was refreshing to see a well-paced thriller with great suspense, humor, and character development.

The first time I saw this preview, the first thought that came into my head was "Oh, my God, how could they rip off Rear Window?", Rear Window is one of my all time favorite movies. But my boyfriend and I had nothing better to do last week and decided to see it, I have to say that actually, it wasn't as bad as I expected, I have to admit that it was a pretty good re-introduction to one of the greatest thrillers of all time. It had a new and fresh feeling with teens and it worked, despite how it seemed a bit more predictable than Rear Window, it still was pretty clever.

Kale has had a rough year, while driving his father back from their father/son fishing trip, they get into a horrible fatal car accident, the Father dies, but Kale is alive trying to deal with the guilt of what happened. But a teacher pushes him too far in his high school Spanish class and he hits the teacher, putting him on house arrest, he cannot leave outside his property. But he's in luck when a hot young girl moves next door, they quickly develop a peeping tom type of relationship, they spy on the neighbors, but when they see the neighbor across the street on a date, but the date "never leaves the house" and they want to prove him as a cold hearted murderer, but is he? You'll have to see this movie to find out.

So Distubia was a pretty good movie, I would recommend it, although before you see it, I would highly recommend seeing Rear Window, but this was a good updated version that I'm sure you'll enjoy. It keeps you on the edge of your seat and will make you ask questions over and over again, those are always the thrillers that are worth seeing.

7/10

Disturbia tells the story of a teenage boy named Kale who is sentenced to three months house arrest after punching a teacher in the face for making a comment about his recently deceased father. When his mother takes away his TV and his computer, he resorts to spying on the houses surrounding him. Things begin to get frightening when he begins to suspect one of his neighbours is a serial killer. He gets his friends involved with his impromptu investigation, and soon the neighbour realizes he's being watched...And he's not too happy about it. Disturbia is loosely based off the 1954 Alfred Hitchcock classic Rear Window, but it is still a film all in itself, and it is the best thriller I've seen in a while.

What makes this movie better than most horror movies that are released today is that is doesn't rely on excessive gore and gross out tactics to frighten you. It relies on mood and suspense, and that works so much better. As the film went on, the tension got so high that I was literally on the edge of my seat rubbing my hands together because I was so anxious to see what was going to happen next. I actually felt the adrenaline rush that the characters in the film must have been feeling when they were snooping around in the neighbour's garage. The movie has a realistic feel of how creepy it would be to have a serial killer living across the street from you and you had no way to prove it. Everything in this movie is done well. The writing, the directing, the way it all pans out. I was actually shocked when I left the theatre over how good this movie really was.

The acting was very good from everybody involved. Shia LaBeouf has come a long way from Even Stevens. Something tells me that he has a nice career ahead of him. David Morse is perfectly sinister as the neighbour. He's just one of those actors that you might not know who he is to hear his name, but he pops up here and there and you always say, "Cool, it's that guy." Overall, this was an amazing thriller, and I'm glad I went to see it because I really wasn't expecting that much. It leads me to wonder why Hollywood continues to pump out absolute garbage like the Saw trilogy, Hostel, and Dead Silence when they could be making movies like this instead.

8/10

I had seen the trailer of the movie and found it appealing. Later I found that it is somewhat similar to Rear Window – the Hitchcock movie and is on the same lines; that made me go and see this movie.

It is the story of a young boy Kale (Shia LaBeouf) who is sentenced to 3 months of house arrest and finds ways to peep through his windows in neighbors' lives – one, the recently moved neighbor girl Ashley (Sarah Roemer) and another middle aged guy Mr.Turner (David Morse) who our young boy and his friend Ronnie (Aaron Yo) suspects as a killer. Is Mr.Turner a killer? Or this is just paranoia of our young gang? The Director D.J.Caruso – who has specialized in crime thrillers in past 4-5 movies, does a very decent job in keeping the audience engrossed in the narrative and unfolds the story slowly and nicely. The movie presents many aspects of drama, and takes us through a ride of varied sub-plots with good interest. There are a couple of minor annoying scenes – like the love aspect (quite unnecessary I thought, but may be required for today's young audiences) and the usual cliché of thriller movies. But overall the movie is entertaining.

Shia LaBeouf is not a great actor, but does a decent job, so does the Sarah Roemer, Aaron Yo and David Morse.

The camera work is excellent because it shows only that much which would make you eager to peep beyond the camera frame to see what is there – and that keeps you engaged. The music is okay.

Yes, the movie is not close to the classic Rear Window, but I should say that I liked the movie.

(Stars 6.75 out of 10)

I understand that the new movie Disturbia is about a person who is unable to leave his room and must look out the window for entertainment. During his peeping sessions, he finds that his neighbor might be a killer and by doing so, tries to get everyone around him to help find out the truth. That premise, and that premise alone, is the ONLY thing that likens this movie to Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece of tension and technical genius, Rear Window. Director D.J. Caruso has taken this script, no credit listed to the writers of that classic, and created a contemporary world around which he can create a cat and mouse chase from the small radius that our protagonist is allowed to travel within having a house arrest anklet affixed to his leg. If the critics are to be believed that this is a ripoff/remake, then every romantic comedy coming down the pipeline is one as well. Boy meets girl, boy must win girl, conflict causes relationship to stay strained, boy ultimately wins girl. Actually since every rom-com follows that exact plot sketch, they are more derivative than Disturbia to Rear Window because Caruso takes a premise, updates it, and makes it his own.

Worried that this might end up as another lame duck attempt from the director, I didn't have too lofty of expectations. I am a fan of Shia LaBeouf, ever since his "Even Stevens" days, and knew he could give it credibility. Fortunately, after the highly disappointing Taking Lives and the ho-hum Two for the Money, it seems Caruso has come back to the form he had with his brilliant debut Salton Sea. Maybe it was the recent work on "The Shield," but we have some nice grit, close-up composition, and stylish camera-work. The realism from Sea is back and Disturbia brings it all to make one of the most entertaining films I've seen this year. We have fantastic humor—LaBeouf's delivery and everyman rapport lends to this well—as well as effective scares and edge of your seat suspense. This is a PG-13 movie that knows what it is and rather than titillate with coming as close to the line as possible, stays in check and deals out a healthy dose of mood and emotion rather than blood and sex. I'd even go as far as saying Sarah Roemer's girl-next-door is the most sensual role this year. It is all about her confidence and eyes, her body language makes it work, and you fall for her just as LaBeouf does, whereas the usual R-rated nudity and over the top craziness has been going so far as to numb audiences by doing what every film now does. Credit Caruso for showing restraint for everything and leading us along by uncovering pieces of the story only when we need to know them.

Besides LaBeouf, Roemer, and a funny turn from Aaron Yoo, the main driving force here is David Morse. This gem of a character actor is at the top of his game as the villainous, did he or didn't he, neighborhood serial killer. He is good as the conflicted heavy who does wrong only when the world around him has forced him to, (like in Dancer in the Dark and Down in the Valley), but he is perfect as the all out creepy, sly-smiling force being accused of kidnapping and killing numerous women. Morse was allowed to run free and he took the opportunity and went even further with it. Where many suspense films like this would become laughable eventually, the realism brought out through LaBeouf and Morse keep the audience enthralled and interested in how everything will play out. I was never bored and at times actually wondering what would happen next because I was so caught up. When the climax comes, I actually was surprised thinking it was crazy that they would get us there so early, but I was just so into it that I didn't realize how much time had past.

Disturbia is a genre film and won't be winning any awards any time soon. What it may lack in total originality it more than makes up for in mood and effective thrills. It had everything you could want from a movie without making you have to think too much. Sit down, go for the ride and walk out of the theatre with the knowledge that your time was well spent. D.J. Caruso, thank you for redeeming yourself.

This film is a call back to that 2005-2010 era of movies where they have something special about them, less CGI, less connected storylines, just a basic plot and some decent young acting.

Disturbia is an entertaining movie that showcases Shia LaBeouf's acting skills and commitment in his roles. He is the main focus of this movie and he certainly holds it as well, the side characters are alright, but this is definitely a Shia Showcase!

The plot of the movie is okay enough, nothing special happening, typical teenager thinks his neighbor is a killer and then proceeds to play detective and see if it is true type of story.

All in all, this movie is worth watching or re-watching just for Shia alone, but the movie holds promise albeit letting some cliches hold it back. So strap in, make sure your seat belt is on and swerve into this guilty pleasure.

'Disturbia' is a solid, entertaining thriller that does exactly what it says on the tin. Whilst it's nothing new or special, it is well made, suspenseful and effective in building and sustaining tension.

Shia LaBeouf and David Morse deliver solid performances as Kale and villain Mr Turner. Their characters are interesting and unpredictable and work well with the theme of the film. 'Disturbia' is well paced, the developments are appropriately timed and the film does a good job at keeping you guessing.

All in all, a perfectly decent mystery thriller. One of the better ones I have seen of late, and one I would recommend.

After hitting his Spanish teacher, seventeen year-old Kale (Shia Labouf) is sentenced to three months of house arrest and must wear an ankle bracelet to make sure he stays put.

After Mom (Carrie Ann-Moss) literally cuts the cord to other forms of diversion, Kale begins watching his neighbors. The cute new girl (Sarah Roemer) that just moved in the house next door gets most of his attention, but Kale also begins to notice strange happenings at the nearby home of Mr. Turner (David Morse.)

LaBouf's Kale doesn't quite measure up to the standard set by Jimmy Stewart so many years before and the frenetic pace of the film can be annoying. but "Disturbia is still a somewhat entertaining re-telling of "Rear Window" complete with bathroom humor, close-up shots of female rear-ends, and the inevitable use of cell phones and personal computers as plot devices.

On a academic level this movie wouldn't be a 10/10 but on enjoyment level this movie was amazingly entertaining and I really liked Ashley and Kale as a couple this movie kept me entertained and had me excited.

I went to see this because of the advertised, "Rear Window."

That film was an amazing experience for me. Hitchcock can be said to have invented the curious camera, the camera that moves and explores as if it were a character. It probes, it withdraws, it discovers. It "finds" the story. It only does in some of his films. Actually, for most of his career, he was merely a highly skilled craftsman. But then he developed this idea. With "Rear Window" he turned it all upside down. The camera could explore: the world had to be a stage that was composed before and for the camera.

Its frozen noir. That film and "Touch of Evil" ended the ordinary noir period. Since then we can only reference it.

Just because it is a kiddie film didn't phase me. These sometimes have the cleverest nuances, the most oblique perspectives.

But oh, not here, not here. There's the slightest nod to "Rear Window," updated via "Blair Witch" to have the film within be a genuine film.

What we have instead is one of those irrelevant things about teen remoteness and improbable companionship. Onto that is spliced a modern horror bit, with a cabbage patch Hannibal. And only onto that dog's mess do we have the remnant of the fixed pane.

Odd, because the serial killer notion often finds its way into films with a strong story, and this is embedded as a movie within, often a counter-noir where the killer and his opposite fight for control over fate, the shape of fate.

Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

I have to get that (see title) out of the way up front. I have never seen such an incredible proliferation of visible boom microphones in any other movie. Seriously, there was a microphone visible somewhere at the top of the screen for almost the entire length of the film. At some points in the movie, more than one microphone could be seen at a time. I understand that things slip through the editing process but this was just ridiculous.

The movie itself was not too bad. I was a little put off about twenty minutes into the movie when it suddenly dawned on me that I was basically watching a reworking of Rear Window but who really expects anything original from a movie, these days?. As far as teen idol vehicles go, I think Disturbia was slightly better than most. The beginning of the movie was beautifully shot and paced with a very convincing father-son dynamic. I actually felt the bond between the characters. Shia LaBeouf seems to be a decent actor and Carrie-Anne Moss's mother character was one of the most realistic I've ever seen in this type of movie; she was neither an overbearing troll nor a doormat for her son. Aaron Yoo's Ronnie was great comic relief and the kind of friend a lot of us have had (or have ourselves been to others). All in all, I think the casting was done well and the actors all turned in decent performances, with David Morse's Turner standing out the most.

Unlike the other review I just read, I don't think the pacing in this movie was all that good. There were huge blocks of what I like to call "nothing". I guess if you're a seventeen year old male, you'll enjoy the 65% of the movie that is spent watching Kale's new female neighbor through binoculars, but to me it just seemed to slow down the film. There was a little action in the beginning, a huge stretch of watching a girl swim, then a massive rush of violence at the end of the flick. I think Disturbia would benefit from a few less minutes of swimming neighbors and Hostess products towers (you'll see what I mean when you watch the movie).

I gave this movie a six because, despite what I said above and the constant presence of boom mics, this movie actually got my heart racing once or twice and the acting was quite good. If you like murder mysteries and/or teen-oriented movies, this one is worth a watch on some Sunday afternoon.

Seriously, though, there's a microphone in nearly every shot.

I was very entertained when I saw an advanced screening of this last night, I was happy that this focused on the characters more, for they are very likable - It just makes the terror far more terrifying! It is of course similar to other thrillers, but what isn't? The young cast give very good performances in what is much like a smart teen romantic comedy, and the opening scene is very well done.

If you just enjoy sitting back and watching a thriller then you'll enjoy this, A LOT, but if you're a fussy nit-picker who think they are beyond teen thrillers, you better stay away.

It's co-written by Carl Ellsworth who also wrote RED EYE and if you enjoyed that you should enjoy this. The direction is good also.

The music choices are cool too.

Lot's of quirky humour and scary set pieces keep you entertained in a fun suspense-mystery-thriller.

"Rear What?" Disturbia - 9/10.

DJ Caruso's Disturbia is a rip-off at heart. It never plays that way, though, which is one of it's saving qualities. However, Hitchcock's Rear Window is definitely the inspiration here. It's a great idea. Unfortunately, this version couldn't quite seem to decide what genre it was.

Shia Lebouf plays the lead guy, Kale. He witnesses his father's death in a car accident, and becomes withdrawn and sullen as a result. This attitude leads him to punch one of his teacher's in the face, which lands him under house arrest. He can only go 100 hundred feet from his house, or the police will be there in seconds. Soon, he finds himself becoming a peeping tom on all his neighbors, including new neighborhood hottie Ashley (Sarah Roemer) and possibly homicidal neighbor Mr. Turner. This is where the movie gets a little confused. For about the first hour and a half, it can't seem to figure out whether it's a horror, comedy, or even possibly a romance. Some of the drama that occurs between Kale and his new girlfriend Ashley is downright stupid. On the other hand, though, when it gets to the horror parts, it does it superbly. The comedy pretty much stays intermixed throughout, which is odd. That's kind of how I would describe the entire movie.

Shia Lebouf does do a fine job of acting. He proves himself better with every movie he's in. Sarah Roemer also actually does an excellent job with her easily over-played part. The always dependable David Morse also is sufficiently terrifying as the killer next door neighbor.

So really, Disturbia is not awful. Most of it's elements are very well played out. There's just a bit too many elements in the mix with this one. The script could use some work. 6/10 stars.

Jay Addison

I didn't have high hopes for this film because it seemed like it was just going to be another predictable thriller. It was predictable but the sum of the parts were put together so brilliantly that it didn't matter.

ACTING: A

Shia LaBeouf -- Who? That's a name that's going to be on everyone's lips by the end of the year after this one is followed by TRANSFORMERS. Very good and never over the top.

Sarah Roemer -- She's hot. The role luckily didn't require much more from her.

Carrie-Anne Moss -- Ehh. She should stick to The Matrix where emotion isn't part of her character. She really offered nothing to the film. In her only scene to really shine she performed dimly.

David Morse -- Excellent through and through! Very creepy.

CINEMATOGRAPHY: A+ Rogier Stoffers -- For a guy that usually works in comedy, he did a great job with the angles and movements.

DIRECTION: A D.J. Caruso -- More used to episodic work but made the transition to feature very nicely.

ART and SET DECORATION: A + + Attention to detail was always there.

SOUND: A Very nice and steady.

The movie started out with an incredible action scene put together by stunt coordinator Manny Perry and SFX Coordinator Darrell Pritchett that seemed as if to set the pace for the entire film. It did not, however. Instead the film began to lag for about 20 minutes before finally getting back on track and speeding to and end that we all knew was coming. Even when the scenes lacked any entertaining dialogue they were still pleasant to watch due to the incredible job of Direction and camera work. You wont be disappointed nor will children lose sleep from the gore. It wasn't a slasher film but made you think it was going to be. Enjoy !

This is a tough one to review. On the one side I remember really enjoying this as a smart little teen thriller back in my youth. Re-watching it now, it's far too clichéd and problematic to withstand any real thrills. Do I score this based on the time it was released, or how badly it's dated? We shall see. A grieving and troublesome boy is put under house arrest where he lives his daily routine by spying on his neighbours, a new girl on the block on one side and a potential serial killer on the other. You could class this as a modernised version of Hitchcock's famous 'Rear Window', it does indeed pay homage to this in a few subtle ways. The slow build up of suspense and tension is well crafted, much like 'Rear Window'. The first half is focussed purely on building up the protagonist, the second then descends into thriller territory. Do the two marinate? Not consistently. It does feel like you are watching two different films. A comedic light hearted teen flick then contrasts with a dark suspenseful thriller. I understand why, to show that any neighbourhood no matter how pleasant the exterior seems does indeed hold ominous secrets. In this case, a murdering psychopath. Separately these two halves work really well and are thoroughly enjoyable, although filled with mediocrity. They just don't blend together. Shia LaBeouf actually gives a decent lead performance. David Morse and Carrie-Anne Moss needed way more screen time, although the former was very menacing. Unfortunately, director DJ Caruso was too focussed on filming Sarah Roemer's ass and having fans blow into the actor's faces just to blissfully move their hair in a gentle breeze to care about the technical aspects of the film. The cheap alt-rock soundtrack, the forced romance which amounts to nothing in the final act and lack of character development. The whole film felt mediocre, but still pleasantly enjoyable. It's a weird one this, but I'm in a good mood so will grant it with the higher score. Entertaining but far too many flaws.

Disturbia...Oh the possibilities. But!, if you ask me this movie is a steaming pile of "hot" poo. The entire story is way to simple for anyone to take serious. The writers could have really made this movie into something great, but I guess that was their intentions. I guess thats why it's rated PG-13, but I don't any 13 year old that would be even remotely disturbed by this movie. Why would anyone call a movie that is rated PG-13 scary, if the movie does nothing of the sort. I feel completely retarded for even thinking this movie was going to be entertaining. But then again most movies of this nature end up getting us all the time. I wouldn't even recommend sneaking in to see it, the end result will leave you feeling angered for wasting your efforts to sneak in. Well ill just add this to the list of movies that shoulda...coulda...but didn't and try and remind myself that a PG-13 movie could never scary, and watch something else.