Solid Entertainment Value!

Rating: 6/10 (3 March 2012)

I do like what they tried to do with the story and the focus on Kale's character, but I think they could have tightened a bit further by losing some of his exposition and making Turner's a little more honed in (so when the inevitability of the predictable moments begin, there is more to him than the plainly obvious things). This is a movie with a very small cast of speaking roles, and they easily could have shifted things around and reworked certain moments in the film to be a lot more synthetic than others. As said previously, I was actually kind of surprised with how much better the film was than I ever would have assumed, so these gripes could have only made the film all the better than it already is.
LaBeouf does very well as the main character. He has a certain likability about him that makes us genuinely invested in what his character feels and does throughout the film, and he never once loses it. He makes the character very believable, and lends him a certain aura of authenticity. This is a character that LaBeouf could actually be like in real life, and it shows in how easy it seems for him to be acting within the role (and how he is not straining so hard like he does in Transfomers).
Morse, as always, does very well in his role. I do not want to spoil his most meaty scenes, but suffice to say, he is very kind and terrifyingly frightening all at once. He easily switches from emotion to emotion like someone is flicking a light switch, and much like LaBeouf, makes the role believable and real.
Roemer, Moss and Aaron Yoo as Kale's friend Ronnie all put in worthwhile performances that only further complement the work done by LaBeouf and Morse. Each (especially Moss) could have done with a little bit more exposition though.
As much as I hate to say it, I was rather impressed with Disturbia. It is an effective thriller with a few problems, but is otherwise quite a worthwhile watch.