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When a movie tips its hat to a classic, it’s either really good or really bad. Sometimes the director pulls it off, other times the person is totally out of their league.
The classic in the case of "Disturbia" is Alfred Hitchock’s iconic "Rear Window," considered to be one of the master of suspense’s finest works. A high order indeed. Although "Disturbia" doesn’t even come close to classic status, it’s not bad as thrillers go. Even if things do get a bit silly at the end.
Shia LaBeouf plays Kale, a typically quiet teen who punches out his Spanish teacher when he brings up the student’s late father. Kale is sentenced to house arrest and must wear one of those annoying ankle bracelets. If he goes out of his yard, a signal brings the cops who will take him to jail. To kill time, the teen starts spying on his neighbors and takes notice of the hottie Ashley (Sara Roemer) who has just moved in and another neighbor (David Morse) who is acting very much like a serial killer.
The main reason to see "Disturbia" is LaBeouf (and I’m not just addressing this to teenage girls), who recalls a young Dustin Hoffman. LaBeouf has a good 4 inches on the latter, but has the Everyman quality Hoffman had down pat when he was in his prime. Like Hoffman, LaBeouf is equally adept at comedy and drama and gets to use both in this movie.
At the helm of "Disturbia" is D.J. Caruso, a frequent TV director who has done a few feature films. He does a good job getting things going, as the movie wastes little time. We see Kale spying on his unsuspecting neighbors, often with the help of buddy Ronnie (Aaron Yoo). Then there is a bit of a romantic detour with Ashley, an introspective young lady who is immediately on to Kale.
Overall, "Disturbia" is well-made and teen-friendly, and keeps you watching until the very end. The movie’s resolution is wildly implausible, but should be viewed as a thrill ride and not a serious look at suburban teenagers.
Morse, whose lanky, deceptively wholesome presence is always welcome, is sufficiently creepy here. The rest of the cast is just fine, especially Yoo and Roemer.
"Disturbia" is an entertaining roller-coaster ride that’s not going to make anybody forget "Rear Window," but is still a fun movie.
Disturbia
PG-13
Two-and-a-half reels out of four
In area theaters tomorrow
Recommended rental
The Last King of Scotland
R
Available Tuesday
To say 2006 was Forest Whitaker’s year is a huge understatement. As the ruthless and complex dictator Gen. Idi Amin Dada, the usually unassuming Whitaker found the role of a lifetime and won just about every award out there.
Adapted from Giles Foden’s acclaimed novel, "The Last King of Scotland" views Amin through the eyes of Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy), an idealistic Scottish doctor who arrives in Uganda to be the dictator’s personal physician.
