Swamped by rampant, insidious technology, Disconnect’s characters share a void of connectedness with other human beings–especially loved ones. Emotional compensation makes its uncertain, fateful presence in their emotionally empty lives by way of the same virtual sources that can intensify the problem as easily as alleviate it. In Disconnect, a cautionary and vivid yarn by director Henry-Alex Rubin (Murderball) many of the cliches meant to diss films with parallel, converging stories (Crash, Babel, Magnolia) will be thrown around with the usual scorn. Pay them no heed.
A cruel, internet prank on a high school kid; identity theft adding insult to the injury of a grieving couple; an internet porn actor asked by a reporter to expose his underage-exploiting ringleader. Fathers distant from their sons and a husband and wife who don’t really know each other complete the setup. Throw in an ex-cop who specializes in internet crime only to have his own technology-induced surprise awaiting and you’ve got a tsunami of broken dreams and frustrated victims on a collision course to 21st century hell. If it all sounds like it’s teetering on the edge of melodrama, its proximity to total disaster keeps it real.
The ensemble of fine acting starts with a fine Jason Bateman in a rare dramatic role and the always sharp Alexander Skarsgard as a quiet veteran ready to seek revenge on whoever digitally robbed him and his lonely wife (Paula Patton) of all their money. The talented Hope Davis, with sadly not enough to do here, plays Bateman’s wife, who doesn’t understand his obsessive need to investigate once a family tragedy befalls them. Max Theriot is very good as the young guy who calls the older, inquiring reporter a “puma”–the stage just before cougar, he tells her. His own surprise awaits.b
Internet hoaxes require cruel, young perpetrators, and Rubin and screenwriter Andrew Stern have that covered, too. The film’s details hold firm on a gripping realism with hardly a false note. Rubin uniquely shoots the action in a peek-a-boo style that further dramatizes the despair. As one would expect, things converge into a blistering, all-roads-lead-to-convergence climax that may surprise you. The moral of the story? Not that technology is bad, but the next time you reach for a device in a weak moment, treat it as gjngerly as you would a gun and you’ll be better off.
4 Like This If You Think Technology Can Bite You In The Ass (out of 5)