One of the rare films that directly responds to and expresses modern anxieties, this debut feature from director Henry Alex Rubin interweaves the stories of three sets of people, whose lives are upended through various bad things that happen over the Internet -- including bullying and identity theft. A fascinating and riveting thriller.
This is a mix of drama and thriller and it features themes including connection i.e. personal, human connection and friendship, plus digital social networking, identity theft and obviously victimisation and bullying, among others. I felt the topics were well handled - I liked how the film contained numerous sub-plots, all of which are, of course, related. Its a subject area that I find quite interesting and its fair to say that I have, shall we say, some personal experience when it comes to loneliness and wanting to find genuine connections online. Its often surprised me how honest and open people seem to be online, moreso than I feel I'd automatically be if I were having a face to face conversation but then thats probably mainly due to my social anxiety and thats a whole other subject. Suffice to say, I'm curious about the psychology of the subject area. I'd heard recently that loneliness is becoming more prevalent in society, which, considering how quick and easy it is to communicate with people online nowadays (and also cheap, given what equipment would have costed some 10-20 years ago), is somewhat surprising.
I felt the film was quite tense and it did grip me from fairly early on - whether im especially biased due to my interest in the subject area, I can't really say but I thought the various sub-plots were pretty well thought out. Each one raised certain questions and thoughts. The camerawork wasn't particularly smooth, as I noticed the camera seemed to be almost constantly on the move - it wasn't exactly painfully jerky as such but there was a tendency for the cameras to cut between various angles in a relatively quick fashion, which I suppose made scenes seem a little faster paced than otherwise maybe. Cast wise, Rich Boyd is played by Jason Bateman and Lydia Boyd is played by Hope Davis. They both give good, convincing performances. Also present are Frank Grillo as Mike Dixon, Paula Patton as Cindy Hull, Andrea Riseborough as Nina Dunham and Alexander Skarsgard as Derek Hull, plus (of course) others. I wouldn't say that the cast were exceptional, or bad, nothing particularly stood out about the individual performances as such, so thats about all I can think to say on that front. I felt the characters were well developed and thus it wasn't difficult to feel sorry for certain people due to their circumstances.
The film features various instrumental, classical sounding tunes played during key scenes, to highlight the sense of isolation and other issues which are clearly in play at that time - it was a bit chilling to me at times but very well done. Content wise, this film features some strong language, sex references, partial nudity and in general the film has quite a strong emphasis on sex in general, plus drug references and moderate violence - however this does include, more specifically, a scene involving suicide, which could upset anyone who has been affected by suicide, of course. It is a relatively mature film, dealing with adult themes at times and due to this and the rest of the content mentioned, its been given a 15 rating.
Its a tough watch at times but its quite poignant and overall a good film of its sort, so worth a watch.
An amazing Drama that made me cry, Guys do not cry. It's impossible. This Movie amazed me and touched me on all the right places. The incredible Acting is just the cherry on the beautiful Cake.
Fails not so much because of its occasional self-seriousness or didacticism than it does from a scattered plot that makes the story's overriding theme or message difficult to grasp.
This movie was brilliant. The concept was imaginative and thoughtful and the acting wonderful. I've rarely cared about characters so much. It's the best movie I've seen this year.
The film explores acts of exploitation in the technology based modern world, portraying disconnected characters in several different yet interlocking narratives. It is a rare occasion when characters in the film often seems grey rather than pure black and white, which authentically resembles the real world.
I just saw Disconnect on HBO, and I'm very surprised that so many critics missed the boat on this film, which is so compelling. The plot **** you in right from the start, and the actors give excellent performances, making you really care about these characters. The message is there about the negative impact of the Internet, computers, and cell phones on all our lives, but it is blended into the suspense in the narrative, which reflects so much of what modern life is like, how technology can disconnect from each other.
Watch this. It's really good.
It does have some valid points to make about technology, offering a strong critique of the people that use it. Unfortunately, its interesting concept and talented cast are distractions from the fact that it barely has anything original to say.
Boring rubbish from start to finish. Can't believe anybody would think this says anything about www or how they can see anything in this film that we don't all already know. Shallow, banal and worthless.