A secluded home, a trapped family, and a safe potentially full of cash -- all elements of a home invasion thriller that are found in Joel Schumacher’s film “Trespass,” but without the thrills.

The movie centers around Nicolas Cage (“National Treasure”) as Kyle Miller, a ridiculously wealthy diamond dealer, and his unhappy wife Sarah, played by Nicole Kidman (“Moulin Rouge”). A group of four burglars disguised as cops break into the house while the Millers’ angsty teenage daughter Avery sneak out to a party.

With two Oscar-winners playing the leads, “Trespass” had the potential of being a suspenseful and thought-provoking film about trust and family. Throughout the film the characters loyalties are tested. Between the Millers, Sarah and Kyle’s loyalties are tested when Kyle has to bargain with the life of his wife, and with the possibility that his wife was cheating on him. Kidman and Cage have convincing performances as devoted parents wishing for nothing but the safety of their child. 

A different family dynamic is seen with Elias and Jonah, two of the four burglars, who are brothers played by Cam Gigandet (“Never Back Down”) and Ben Mendelsohn (“Knowing”). Jonah struggles between his loyalty to his brother and his psychotic obsession with Sarah. But Jonah’s obnoxious pleas to keep Sarah safe become tiresome while Elias’ incompetence and whiney stripper girlfriend bring more irritation towards the characters.

The power struggle between Kyle and the burglars is intriguing at first, but it is undermined as the same things happen over and over again. For the majority of the movie it’s the same back-and-forth threats between Kyle and the burglars. The burglars have no other tactic but the give-me-the-money-or-die routine. Of course, the daughter eventually comes home and the threats begins all over again with no results. After an hour, a death of one of the characters is almost welcomed just so something significant can actually happen.

Running for only an hour and a half, the lack of action in the movie makes it feel so much longer. There is no suspense and the twists Schumacher tries to throw in are predictable or weak. “Trespass” is a mediocre film at best, but could have been gripping if the villains were more captivating than annoying.

Reach writer Megan Singson here