Lumsdal Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

PiraBit if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Erica Derrick By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Sarita Rafferty There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

johnnyboyz Do Not Disturb hugs a fine line between a gripping, taut and rather brilliant thriller which is built on a foundation of a series of suspenseful set pieces, and out and out farce built on daft escapism and a series of bizarre coincidences. It would be easy to enjoy Do Not Disturb for what it is; to let it wash over you in a manner that'll see you enjoy the crazy chases, conveniencies and scenes of action. But the film doesn't do enough, overall. Do Not Disturb is wild, uneven and seems to establish a number of rules and regulations purely so that it can break them ten minutes later. I didn't have a mute ten year old girl down as a professional hit-man foiler; likewise I didn't have a cold-blooded criminal down as a rejected Home Alone villain and I didn't have William Hurt's character down as an all action, James Bond inspired superhero.The film, bizarrely and seemingly unnecessarily retitled 'Silent Witness' for American audiences, is alive with action and off-the-wall content running parallel to amateurish and contrived acts of silliness. The Silent Witness of the across-the-pond title is a young, mute daughter of Jennifer Tilly's Cathryn Richmond and William Hurt's Walter Richmond. Her name is Melissa. The Richmond's are an American family in Amsterdam specifically there for a rendez-vous Walter is about to have with some business higher-up linked to lawyers and medicine firms – whatever, it's not important. From there, poor Melissa is separated from her parents and witnesses a cold blooded, back alley murder of a man that was ordered by a certain Rudolph Hartman (Chiklis); a man linked to Melissa's father's business trip. From here, a somewhat ludicrous chase ensures between the hit-man and Melissa; the Richmond's desperate search for their daughter and the misadventures the kid gets up to with a homeless, boat dwelling individual.Yes, the film is just about as mad as it sounds. Dutch film-maker Dick Maas paints a somewhat typical portrait of his native nation's supposed cesspit, that-is Amsterdam. He goes so far to get across a sense of familiarity that he even works in a scene set in brothel that typically has to encompass leather-clad subservients and the women that dominate them – one of whom even gets to fire off a few rounds from a pistol. The film might also be read into as a meek exploration of American people based, and severely struggling, within the continent of Europe as the surroundings and elements work against them. If you buy into Eli Roth's somewhat tame theory that he peppers his Hostel films with that is linked to how Americans have a real lack of respect to their surroundings when they travel abroad, you might be tempted to see Do Not Disturb as a cautionary tale to do with keeping together as one unit - and that despite your rich surroundings in whatever hotel you're based; do not underestimate what lurks around the next corner.This is, of course, ignoring the fact everyone in Do Not Disturb is of American acting talent descent: the locals, the police and even Dennis Leary's aforementioned tramp character Simon – the friendliest damn tramp you'll probably ever stumble across. The film spills out onto the streets and begins to resemble a more typical, cause and effect driven thriller that encompasses good vs. evil and that general sensation of chase as one party either outruns or outsmarts a chasing party through clever and rather enjoyable little tussles at random locations. But because the director has a bit of a postcard view of his setting, we get all the usual locations that encompass the already mentioned brothel; an escape down a canal; the using of those arch bridges as vantage points, and so on.I think there's content in Do Not Disturb worth tuning in for, but not enough good content to worth recommending it. Director Maas shows he has an eye for suspense set pieces and displays a good awareness of characters in relation to objects and spaces within the location, it's just that there are problems deeply rooted in both the plausibility of his screenplay and the execution of the action sequences. Take the scene, for example; in which the parents, somewhat stupidly, leave Melissa alone in their hotel room after she's been to Hell and back and attend a meeting downstairs. There is enough ammunition in the sequence that sees the hit-man from earlier attain information on Melissa's whereabouts; go to the wrong room; have Melissa's mother make her way up there unaware of the hit-man's presence and then round everything off in the actual suite. One wonders what our old friend Gene Siskel might've thought of the film and its consistent use of the young girl character in a number of harsh predicaments.I also think some of the the early scenes are rather effective and tap into a very primal fear parents will be able to relate to; that sensation that their child is missing and they're in an area they're not remotely familiar with. But the film is an inglorious failure; it tries to blend too many elements of escapism and realism with comedy and very black material. There's stuff to admire as the suspense attempts to wash over you, and the little girl in the lead role is an easy character to sympathise with and therefore root for; but the film is too much one-part Home Alone, one-part drab and downbeat chase thriller. I'm not familiar with the rest of Maas' work and probably wont track any of it down, but if I happen to stumble across some of it, I have a feeling I might just curiously tune in.

pete-711 This ranks amongst the worst films I've ever seen. I bought the DVD based on the plot summary which sounded interesting and because William Hurt was one of the actors who normally features in great movies. After about 15 minutes, when we got to the gangster scene at the back of the hotel, I had to check the back of the box to see if it was a comedy rather than a "thriller with more twists and turns than the streets of Amsterdam itself". The ridiculous story line and the ham acting were making me laugh. I persevered to the end of the film in the desperate hope that there would be a great point or message but alas this film had absolutely no redeeming features for me. Truly awful. It says on the back cover "When you can't scream you can only run..." but I figured out another two options, cringe or howl with laughter.

Flint-13 I'd had this in the DVD player 5 minutes and realized I'd hired it before. Oddly, I couldn't recall how it finished. Twenty minutes in and I knew why I didn't know how it finished--I'd not been able to sit through it all before, so this time I made a sandwich and sat down to suffer it in its entirety.I was going to blame the director for messing up a good script, but then I realized that it was a writer/director auteur type thing. Some work well, others are catastrophically bad. The plot was sort of OK, the execution awful and the pathetic attempts at humour were totally out of context in such a movie. So was the gratuitous violence--sort of like a Year-11 schoolboy story.As far as acting goes, Francesca Brown aquitted herself quite well; the rest were average to bad. Maybe they just needed the money.Most unbelieveable scene (and there were many): The model aircraft posing as a real plane in the opening scene.Someday I'll be smart enough to make a list of forgettable movies that I must not hire when I go to the video store. I think I'll start that list tonight.

zworg2 A ten year old mute witnesses a murder in a foreign country. Sillyness ensues. The whole film was quite watcheable, but came across as pure eye candy. Child orientated humour (I can only presume this was intended) with a couple of violent scenes and a rather facile car chase as a finale. The acting was rather so so IMO, with the exception of Denis Leary as the childs initial saviour. Cheesey ending, dubious plot development, including a rather big jump in the plot development, ok acting and a dodgy car chase. Watcheable but not worth going out of your way for. Watch it if you would like to fill some time.