doug_park2001 Desperate, drug-addicted, and homeless, Kelly (Gabriella Wilde) and Jonas (Thomas Dekker) have a random stroke of luck and find themselves squatting in the lavish home of the wealthy Silvermans, who are vacationing in Greece. Jonas rationalizes that it should be their privilege to do this because rich people are all corrupt pigs anyway, but Kelly watches the Silvermans' home movies and finds them to be more tragically ordinary and human than Jonas will ever realize. Jonas gets a little too eager and greedy with the Silvermans' expensive jewelry and cars, arranging a lucrative deal with a dangerous racketeer, and to tell you any more would be spoilous.SQUATTERS is well-acted by just about everyone involved, with especially memorable performances by Wilde and Luke Grimes as Michael Silverman. Some other reviewers have criticized its Hollywood-slick portrayal of life's underside in L.A., and it could have shown a bit more sympathy in that area, but what it does show seemed pretty realistic to me. The general cinematography is excellent, with some really pretty south Cali scenery.On the other hand, the transformation that Kelly and Jonas make is pretty unconvincing, as are certain other things, e.g., Jonas's safe-cracking abilities, and wouldn't the maid be coming by occasionally? The ending's somewhat rushed plus a little too neat, easy, and Peter Pan for many tastes. Overall, it just seems that the directors and writers could have made a little more-in-general happen here.Still, SQUATTERS does have some interesting turnabouts and nice old morals to it. The fine acting and expert production help compensate for some of the basic flaws to the story, and I like the way it left me rooting for both Kelly/Jonas and the Silvermans.

westsideschl Was too fakey right from the start. Most dumpster diving streeters look nothing like our Hollywood made up with make up, eye candy actors. The ripping off of a small deli scenes were Holly stereotyping; the grungy look was too wardrobe department shopping; the dirty faces/bodies looked like what a make up artist would create with a brush and the same medium gray water based paint - brush painting in all the right places. More laughable than real. The matrix slow motion effects were as cheap as the very fake punches being thrown in one scene. The owners' reactions to home invasion and serious theft - "What's for dinner!" Son in owner's family predictably and unimaginatively falls for our now magically transformed theft girl (Cinderella after a bath and stolen clothes.) and like all love stories (well, Hollywood love stories) he never truly leaves her. Roughly equivalent to daytime tele soap opera production if that is one's entertainment interest.

Claudio Carvalho In Venice, California, Kelley Tanner (Gabriela Wilde) and Jonas Trumball (Thomas Dekker) are homeless teenagers that live on the beach and spend the day using drugs, drinking booze and shoplifting to survive. One day, Jonas overhears a conversation in a parking area between a woman named Evelyn (Lolita Davidovich) and her housekeeper, and Evelyn tells that she will travel for one month with her husband David (Richard Dreyfuss) and she gives the alarm code to her servant. Jonas sees the chance to rob the house and brings Kelley that is drugged with him. Kelley is needy of family love since she was a foster girl that left her foster house to live on the streets, and she spend the days watching to home videos and getting evolved with Evelyn, David, their son Michael (Luke Grimes), who has a poster of "The Kid" in his room, and their deceased daughter Stephanie. But Jonas is interested in robbing as much as possible to start a new life in Mexico. He meets a dangerous criminal to deal the jewelry and the Porsches of the family. But the family returns and Kelley and Jonas need to flee from the house. When Kelley is wandering on the streets, she stumbles with a movie theater that is showing Charles Chaplin's "The Kid". She buys a ticket and realizes that she is alone in the theater; out of the blue, Charles enters in the theater and sits near her. Soon they drink coffee together and Michael dates Kelley and falls in love with her. Kelly does not disclose her past to Michael but soon she is haunted by what she did. "Squatters" is a movie with a flawed, but pleasant story of love and redemption. Gabriela Wilde has a sweet face but her characters changes too much after a bath, from a drugged to an almost innocent teenager. The story works well until the rushed romance between Michael and Kelley. The plot should have extended their love to make sense the conclusion, with Kelley's redemption and acceptance of Michael and his family. Despite the unbelievable conclusion, the movie deserves a chance to be watched. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Desabrigados" ("Unsheltered")

pieeye-1 Whoever wrote this must have never left the suburbs. I've been homeless and never saw other homeless people walk around with a dirty face. You can't sleep on the beach in California. They make sure everyone is off the beach at 10:00 pm. They even have helicopters with searchlights overhead to make sure no one is hanging back.An amateur cracking a safe? Please. Next time you write a movie try to do a little research. They also find clothes that just fit them.This story has more holes in it than swiss cheese. I' sorry but the sloppy writing kept me distracted. I couldn't enjoy the movie. The acting was good. Too bad it wasn't enough.