In the mold of great thrillers like Unlawful Entry, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, Sleeping With the Enemy, Pacific Heights, Single White Female, and Deceived comes Neil LaBute’s (Death at a Funeral, The Wicker Man) 2008’s underappreciated Lakeview Terrace. This is a movie designed to elicit powerful reactions among its audiences. While this movie never felt that farfetched (until maybe its final scenes), it seems less like a fictional story than I believed it to be, given what we see daily about racism and racial violence as I write this in 2020.

One of the designed emotions of this film was to evoke outrage. Given the senseless killing and abuse of authoritative power that we see on the news on an almost daily basis twelve years later, in a very twisted way, I almost favor a story like this compared to what we’ve seen captured on camera this year. At least in the story of Lakeview Terrace, while racism was prevalent and designed to infuriate, there wasn’t any purposeful attempt at violence. That’s not to say this movie lacked violence, and that’s not to say that its lead character abused his power because both of those things were true. Today, real-life situations seem to dwarf perceived fictional entertainment, which says much about how we’ve allowed ourselves to get here.

Abel Turner (Samuel L. Jackson – Pulp Fiction, The Hateful Eight) is a widowed father of two (teenage daughter Celia and her middle-school-aged brother Marcus), living in a suburb of the greater Los Angeles area. He is also a 28-year police veteran whose abusive handling of a recent domestic disturbance, combined with other complaints filed against him, has landed him on paid leave. Abel is a straightedge kind of guy with his children. They can’t so much as burp without saying, “Excuse me,” before he corrects their behavior. Celia and Marcus love their father, but it is clear that they are terrified of him.

Young couple Chris (Patrick Wilson – The Conjuring, Insidious) and wife Lisa (Kerry Washington – television’s Scandal, Django Unchained) have just moved into the neighborhood. Right away, we can see that Abel isn’t happy. We aren’t sure why right away, though the camera keeps shifting between Abel looking as he looks at Chris (a white man) and then Lisa (a black woman). His eyes and grimace tell us he disapproves, but again, we don’t know why. In fact, we only learn his specific reason for a short time in the film. And even when we become aware of it, it’s not a good reason and doesn’t warrant any vindication. When we learn of his cause, it feels cheap. Yes, we need a reason to explain his hatred. This wasn’t it. And its reveal comes at the wrong time in the wrong setting. It was driven only to get us to the climax, a climax that isn’t that much different from most of the movies I mentioned in the first sentence of this review.

What works well in this film, as what works well in many movies like Pacific Heights, Unlawful Entry, Single White Female, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, etc., is that our antagonist can put on a front to the right people that makes it seem like he’s a good guy. Abel has plenty of friends and is well-liked on the police force. Compared to those other movies referenced above, he has much going for him. He has great kids, gainful employment, a lovely house, and many friends. The antagonists in those other films are more loners who don’t seem to have the same going for them. All certainly have psychotic tendencies, which is no different from Able. However, Able hasn’t been this way his whole life. He wouldn’t have succeeded this far. It’s important to note this as something that separates Lakeview Terrace from other movies.

But make no doubt about it: Able disapproves of the interracial marriage between his neighbors. The jovial man can kick back a beer one minute, beaming his bright house security lights directly into Chris and Lisa’s bedroom the next, and then invite him over for a barbecue. I don’t want to bring mental health issues into this movie, but Abel has mood swings, many of which are unhealthy, violent, and even dangerous. Jackson can contradict this perfectly with the mild, good-natured, likable man that he is in many parts of the movie. How he maneuvers his character from situation to situation is enough to watch this movie.

Not to be outdone, however, is Chris. Though he had starring roles in previous films (Little Children, Hard Candy), this was Luke Wilson’s most profitable movie to date in what might be the most likable character he’s ever portrayed, at least on the big screen. He’s certainly more likable than each of the characters he played in the movies mentioned in this paragraph. For Jackson’s Abel to work, there needs to be a foil. And that’s exactly what Chris is. He’s a good man and a loving husband who works hard to support his family. While he has his flaws (particularly when it comes to interpersonal communication with his wife and genuinely putting her needs before his own), he’s a guy who deserves your cheer. You particularly cheer for him when you see him trying to do the right thing with Abel only to receive his neighbor’s wrath for no reason other than falling in love with a woman with a different colored skin than his own.

Lakeview Terrace will hold your interest the entire time. If you enjoy a good thriller that doesn’t require any brainpower, this is a film for you. Often, we go to the movies to escape everyday life. While this movie certainly doesn’t release us from the racial tensions of 2020 and might even bring those issues more into light (such as police abuse of power) when, in fact, you are trying to escape them, it is an entertaining movie. While it might prove difficult, if you can separate those realities and make this film less about racial issues and abuse of authoritative power, you’ll enjoy it more. If you are able, instead, to make it more about a man with psychotic tendencies, intent on removing his unwanted neighbors from his community, I think you will find it enjoyable, or at least worthy of a watch. I understand it will hit too close to him, especially in 2020.

Plot 7.5/10
Character Development 7.5/10
Character Chemistry 8/10
Acting 7.5/10
Screenplay 6.5/10
Directing  7/10
Cinematography 7.5/10
Sound 7.5/10
Hook and Reel 8.5/10
Universal Relevance 9/10
77.5%

Movies You Might Like If You Liked This Movie

• Dark Blue
• Unlawful Entry
• Pacific Heights
• The Hand That Rocks the Cradle
• Rampart