Unbreakable

Unbreakable (2000)

Starring Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Robin Wright Penn, Spencer Treat Clark, and Charlayne Woodard 

Directed by M. Knight Shyamalan

Written by M. Knight Shyamalan

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Split

Split (2017)

Starring James McAvoy, Anya Taylor-Joy, Betty Buckley, Haley Lu Richardson, Jessica Sula, Sebastian Arcelus, Brad William Henke, Izzie Coffey, and Neal Huff

Directed by M. Night Shyamalan

Written by M. Night Shyamalan

***This film is currently streaming via Netflix***

Summary (in 500 words or less):  Three teenage girls are kidnapped as they leave a shopping mall outside of Philadelphia.  Their captor is Kevin Wendell Crumb (James McAvoy), a man with dissociative identity disorder -- he has split personalities.  Some of these entities are kind, but some are much more malicious...and the most evil of all is a man known only as "The Beast" whose strength is unmatched by normal man.

• Unfortunately, it's that last sentence of the summary that makes Split falter because up until "the Beast" is introduced in the film's final twenty minutes or so, this film was utterly exciting, thrilling, and had me on the edge of my seat.  Writer-director M. Night Shymalan had returned to much of his former glory crafting a tense flick.  Unfortunately, things fall apart a bit at its conclusion.
• That said, Split works for the most part.  This flick is all about the acting and Shymalan directs a great performance from James McAvoy anchoring the film.  He's buoyed by three nice turns from the teens whom he captures -- Anya Taylor-Joy, Haley Lu Richardson, and Jessica Sula.  
• The claustrophobic sense created by Shymalan is felt by the audience and I will admit that I didn't necessarily see things ending the way they did.  SPOILER ALERT -- That said, Shymalan's insistence to tie this in to one of his prior films hurts it more than it helps it.  Perhaps in his upcoming film Glass things will come together a bit more, but as for now the ending of this film disappoints.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - The Visit

The Visit (2015)

Starring Olivia DeJonge, Ed Oxenbould, Deanna Dunagan, Peter McRobbie, and Kathryn Hahn

Directed by M. Night Shyamalan

With their father having left their mother (Kathryn Hahn) a few years ago, Becca and her younger brother Tyler (Olivia DeJonge and Ed Oxenbould) push their mom into going on a cruise with her new boyfriend.  Their mother obliges and sends Becca and Tyler to see their grandparents (Deanna Dunagan and Peter McRobbie) whom their mom hasn't spoken to in nearly twenty years following a fight after which she ran away.  Recognizing the need for possible reconciliation and at the wishes of their grandparents who recently attempted to communicate with their daughter again, Becca and Tyler  head off only to discover that Nana and Pop Pop exhibit some disturbing behavior that may be hiding some dark secrets.

Told in a documentary style of filmmaking -- Becca is a budding filmmaker who wants a recording of her familial history -- M. Night Shyamalan's The Visit builds its tension at a gradual level, but is a bit too full of holes and contrivances (to suit the first-person style of direction) to fully succeed.  That doesn't mean The Visit isn't moderately successful...because it is.  A huge part of the success is the solid acting of Olivia DeJonge and Ed Oxenbould who admittedly aren't given much depth with which to act, but at least carry the film with aplomb.

While it's true Shyamalan fell off the wagon, I never was willing to give up on the director because I always felt -- even in his truly worst films -- there were slight glimmers of promise.  I'm hoping The Visit is a step back in the right direction for him (even if it isn't perfect) and we can see more from this suspense-driven auteur in the near future.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Devil

Devil (2010)

Starring Chris Messina and Five People Trapped in an Elevator

Directed by John Erick Dowdle

I'm not someone that finds M. Night Shyamalan laughable.  Reports spread that the trailer for Devil was receiving more than its share of chuckles when "From the mind of M. Night Shyamalan" popped up on the screen.  Yes, he's had his share of failures, but The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, and Signs are a mighty successful one-two-three punch.  So, I actually kind of wanted to see Devil simply because of Shyamalan's name.  Maybe what the famous director needs is to do exactly what he does in this film -- simply think up a story and have someone else flesh it out and direct it.

Unfortunately, Devil falls a flat, but not because of the premise, so in that regard, Mr. Shyamalan has redeemed himself.  It's the screenplay, actors, and direction that cause this piece to disappoint.

This is a story that would have been incredibly successful as a Twilight Zone episode -- five people are trapped on an elevator.  One by one, the passengers are killed.  Who is the murderer?  Is it possible that some supernatural forces are involved?  Yes, it all sounds a bit insubstantial, but as a 30-minute tv show, I have no doubt it would have worked.  Stretching it out to a still fairly short 80 minutes, some silly backstories are thrown into the mix (including one very reminiscent of what Mel Gibson's character was going through in Signs) and none of them really stick.

Director John Erick Dowdle isnt' able to really build any suspense.  Granted, I will say that there is a good sense of claustrophobia as Dowdle is quite successful at bringing the audience right into the elevator with the five passengers.  However, there was never a moment where I felt tense or worried for any of these characters...and in a thriller that's a bit of a problem.

Dowdle also wasn't able to draw good performances from his actors.  I've seen Chris Messina in quite a bit over the past year (he took spot #4 in my Best Supporting Actor list and spot #5 on my Breakthrough  list in the 2009 RyMickey Awards), but he was just passable here as a cop trying to figure out what the hell is going on in the elevator.  It's more the fault of the silly lines he's forced to spout than anything else.  While Messina may be adequate, some of the passengers on the elevator didn't fare so well.  I understand the desire to not use any "stars" here, but you need believable actors that can spike up the tension in a film like this and none of the people stuck in the elevator were successful in that regard.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-