The Happening Movie
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Storyline
TAGLINES
We've Sensed It. We've Seen The Signs. Now... It's Happening.
A paranoid thriller about a family on the run from a natural crisis that presents a large-scale threat to humanity.
| Mark Wahlberg | Elliot Moore |
| John Leguizamo | Julian |
| Spencer Breslin | |
| Robert Bailey Jr. | |
| Michael Biscardi | Jogger in the park |
| Robert Bizik | Train Station Passenger |
| Michael Edward Brooks | Train passenger |
| Anthony C. Brown | College Student #1 |
| Don Castro | Police Officer |
| Lyman Chen | Passenger #3 |
| Rich Chew | Convertible Passenger #2 |
| Frank Collison | |
| Joel de la Fuente | |
| Stéphane Debac | |
| Tony Devon | Simon |
5.40 out of 10 (32759 votes)
Visitor Reviews
great movie
posted on 30 Aug 2009M night did it again.Do yourself a favor and go see this movie. It is creative, and nothing like you have ever seen before. The best movie i have seen all year. This movie leaves you with a feeling of.... what is really happening here. The story line is beautifully written and the actors are beyond superb. M night does a great job in making the audience feel like there is something unlike the ordinary going on. I don't want to spoil the movie with any scenes... all i can say is that it is an incredible movie. The beginning is a great starting point for the outcome in the end. M night is one of the most amazing directors of our time. He comes with incredibly creative and open minded movies that really leave the viewer guessing. I haven't had this much fun in a theater since the sixth sense.
a very disappointed fan **Spoiler**
posted on 30 Aug 2009I *really* wanted to like this film; I was so excited to go. I loved The Village and enjoyed Signs. I had read the couple of early bad reviews and just figured they were haters. Alas they were right; I'm so sorry I doubted you Gregor Wossilus!Everyone who commented on the terrible acting was right; Zooey Deschanel was MUCH worse than Wahlberg though. John Leguizamo was vastly disappointing. However Ashlyn Sanchez was pretty good.I hated the score. It was so obtrusive in a bad 50s B grade way; dum dum dum duuuummmmm.The foreshadowing was so overdone; ugh, that classroom scene.The scene where the zoo keeper taunted the lions to rip off his arm was promising. I thought for one gorgeous second that Shyamalan was going to turn the film into a Return of the Living Dead-style gorefest. I laughed out loud and settled in for the ride...but no, this ridiculous scene was completely straight!I agree with the other reviewers that the second half was eventless.At least we had fun on the way home ripping into the film.Bleh.
Crafting dread from things unseen
posted on 30 Aug 2009You've heard the saying "the more things change, the more they stay the same"? Well, nothing better describes the critical reception surrounding M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening. For better or worse, Shyamalan has once again stuck to his artistic vision and produced yet another cerebral skin crawler, only to see vast numbers of critics go apoplectic as a result.The Happening unfolds quickly, over the span of a single day, beginning in New York City. All over town, starting in Central Park, people begin succumbing to a bizarre, trance-like state in which they engineer their own deaths in robotic fashion. The viewer, like the protagonists in the film, is left in the dark, forced to either buy into the film's various theories bantered as to why this is happening, or draw their own conclusions. Is it airborne? Has a terrorist cell spiked the water supply with a new neurotoxin? Is humanity the subject of an unexplained die-off akin to that decimating the honey bee population? Shyamalan refuses to provide pat answers. Even after high-school science teacher Elliot Moore (Mark Wahlberg) concludes (as best he can) that the catalyst is a mysterious heretofore unknown airborne agent released by plant life – something akin to the oceanic red tide algae blooms that kill all marine life in their path – we still never know for sure.Because of interviews Shyamalan has given as part of his pre-publicity for the movie, some critics have gone out on a limb and interpreted the film's message as an ode to Intelligent Design writ large, but doing so is really a stretch. While Shyamalan may have committed the unforgivable sin of going on record as somebody in Hollywood who actually holds to a belief system whose focus is other than Scientology or powder that can be sucked up through one's nasal cavities, so much in The Happening is left up to pure speculation that one could easily read just about anything into it. Evolution taking a nasty and rapid turn? The Great Spirit waking up on the wrong side of the bed? Mother Nature deciding it's not nice to fool her (as a margarine ad once expounded)? The honey bee syndrome? Take your pick.What is undeniable, however, is Shyamalan's ability to wring dread out of a simple gust of wind, the coming together of large groups of people, even the lonely quivering of a plastic plant. His talent is reminiscent of Hitchcock, even if his stories are a tad too high concept for a lot of folks, including himself at times.Is The Happening a perfect film? No. It suffers from uneven acting (largely by the stupendously dopey-eyed Zooey Deschanel) and moments of unnecessarily quirky and awkward dialog, but it is a significant bounce back from 2006's tepid Lady in the Water, and it most definitely is a movie that will give you cause to think about things, which, I can safely say, is more than what 99% of this summer's blockbusters will achieve.
I actually walked out
posted on 30 Aug 2009I can't even begin to tell you what a disappointment this latest from M Night was to me. I had started looking forward to it months back when I saw the first trailer, as I have been a follower of his stuff since the Sixth Sense. I actually DID like The Village, and was OK with Lady in the Water- though I have to admit, it seems that each movie was less than the other as they were progressively made. But this- this was a really bad nightmare that I kept expecting to wake up from. In fact, at one point I had even hoped part of the scenario of the movie was that it WAS a bad nightmare- but alas, this nose-dive never pulled back up again. It was as though this was some spoof- not at all like Shyamalan's style to me- no intrigue, no twists or turns, and some of the WORST acting I've ever seen. Course, I felt a few misgivings when I saw the other Wahlberg being the star of this one- but I guess I felt like Shyamalan could work wonders or something. NOT. There were maybe two scenes that actually held any of the trademark Shyamalan humor - and the "suicidal" stuff you see in the trailers that looks like it will be scary, just ends up being as anti-climatic as the rest of the movie. What happened? is all I kept asking. I was ready to walk out within 30 mins or so, but kept hanging on to see if SOMETHING anything would happen to make it get better. It didn't. I just keep thinking- WOW. What a waste from a guy that could bring something like 6th sense and Signs, to get to this. And this my friends, was a joke. Don't waste your money at the movie theater- and really, don't waste your time with the DVD either.
great plot great cast and a great filmmaker!
posted on 30 Aug 2009i came to see this movie in the cinema without any expectations (that's the only way to enjoy a movie that you see for the first time). i do admit - i am a shyalaman fan. i was since i saw 'Signs'. i also liked 'Unbreakable' and 'The sixth sense' but yet some of his project didn't match the quality of those three like 'The vilaje' which i thought was an OK movie but original and 'Lady in the water' which was kinda boring.the new one from shyamalan is 'The happening' were he takes his movie a few steps and make it a more horror kinda flick but still delivering us a great and original plot with superb actors and some beautiful shots and memorable scenes that you'd like to talk about them with your friends when you go out of the cinema. as i said, no expectations what so ever. the movie has surprised me as i forgot where i am for an hour and a half. i enjoyed it very much but i still think he could make the ending a little bit longer than that. still, not as good as 'Signs' but if you like his previous movies you would sure like this one. 10 of 10:]
Incoherent, uninteresting and slow!
posted on 30 Aug 2009Okay, so I saw this trailer a few weeks ago for what seemed like an interesting movie. Something about a mysterious event, something about disappearing bees, something about people fleeing the big cities and something about a natural disaster. Seemed kinda new and suspenseful compared to the usual crappy Hollywood-flick trailers packed with action, one-liners and Kodak-moments. Besides, Mark Wahlberg usually performs quite fair in my opinion, so of course I decided to watch this movie on the big screen. Unfortunately, what I didn't realize was that the trailer WAS the movie! That was f...... it! There is no more to this movie than what the trailer reveals! Of course there is a lot of characters babbling back and forth, trying to explain the "happening", quite a bit of gore and a whole bunch of weird Shyamalan-like scenes, doing absolutely nothing whatsoever to progress the movie. WTF! If you're into that kinda useless stuff, you should definitely watch this flick. The rest of you should just watch the trailer and be happy that I just spared you ninety minutes of incoherent bull.Well, allow me to correct myself. The movie takes of quite well, kinda like the trailer "promised". The unknown threat that suddenly reveals itself to mankind is merciless and intriguing but is eventually reduced to an incoherent phenomenon pseudo-scientifically explained as a plant conspiracy against mankind or something like that. Anyway, after approximately twenty-five minutes or so, the movie just die in a way. Nothing of greater importance to the overall plot of the movie happens after this point! Now, everyone knows that M. Night Shyamalan usually adds a nice plot twist towards the end of his movies making them a little more watchable. So I waited patiently for this twist to come. Was it all just a dream? Was Mark Wahlberg actually a ghost? Was the government behind the mysterious event? I waited anxiously! I needed a twist! Anykind of twist, no matter how lame!! But the damn twist never came! This movie is completely and utterly straight forward! Simple in the bad way. Excuse the blasphemy, but Jesus Christ! I'd rather have a buffalo take a diarrhea dump in my ear than sit through the last hour of this flick once again. It is so uninteresting! So boring! The dialogue is just, well, abundant and many of the scenes just don't do anything! Now, many people will most likely ignore the terrible plot and give me a lecture about how the movie is not at all about the characters and their exodus, but instead a symbol of how mankind is punished for his misdeeds against Nature and bla bla bla. Erh, yeah! That particular subplot was just as subtle as a tank in a mini-market, thank you! If a professional writer can't think of a better way to propagate this message, than making plants go postal, Hollywood is on really thin ice! Gee, I wondered why a scene had a big dirty nuclear power plant as a "discrete" background. Humiliating and clumsy symbolism, that's what that is. And as for the other subplots, these are just boring. Something about Wahlberg's wife having an affair and something about, no wait, that was it. WTF! As for the cast, Wahlberg hasn't exactly received applause for his role as the protagonist Elliot. I'm not sure I agree tough. I think he does a decent job most of the time, considering the terrible plot and the weird lines he has to work with. He is definitely not the one to blame.So, all in all, "The Happening" is a piece of junk not worth a view in my opinion. Three keywords: incoherent, uninteresting and slow. Don't expect anything.
Bad acting, choppy writing
posted on 30 Aug 2009Everyone in this movie except for Mark Wahlberg could have been recast, with positive results, and no one would have noticed. Leguizamo is wasted as some geek math teacher with no common sense. Everyone in the movie seems to have inappropriate emotional responses to things not yet in evidence. Some of the time the characters' facial expressions do not in any way match what they are talking about; they talk about very tense, upsetting things with no expression. The leaps of logic that people make are in no way logical, and Elliott's hissy fit screaming "give me a minute! give me a minute! give me a minute!" does not fit with his character, and really, it isn't as if people are harassing him for a decision. There was no chemistry whatsoever between Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel, strangers on a bus could have been more connected than this "husband and wife", even with the purported marital problems that seem to have been exaggerated. The way Elliott talks about Alma to Julian as they exit the school, it seems as if the marriage is hanging by a thread and he almost seems to be setting Julian up to be prepared for Alma to be an angry, distant, mentally unstable twit. Julian for his part treats his child as if she were about to go postal, which she never does either, and at times his character seems forced, as if only thrown in to have another "star" name in the credits.
People are being way too harsh
posted on 30 Aug 2009As a thriller, I liked it, I think overall the story telling, the atmosphere worked very well, and for a few moment, it was pretty damn creepy. However, what was drawing me back was the way people killing themselves in the movie. I just don't buy it that when people are losing their mind, speaking confused and losing sense of direction can execute pretty complicated suicide. The part when a man killed himself by lying in front of the grass cutter, I thought it was hilarious. Creepy but hilarious. Another thing was to emphasize that people are losing their sense of direction the director made some characters walking backward. Perfect straight backward. I think this is even harder than walking forward. To me it demonstrated a better sense of direction... I thought the problem was that at some point the director was a little too deep in his own world that he cut some sort of connection with reality. Lady in the water was the first movie that made me feel this way. Nonthless, the movie was well paced, the emotion was well played and the characters were more or less believable. It definitely deserve better than some of the harsh criticism.
An apocalyptic classic
posted on 30 Aug 2009I'm really not a big Shyamalan fan. But I've always respected his Kubrick-like pursuit to make his own style of movie rather than adopt the usual Hollywood formula. I thought 'the 6th Sense' was interesting but I've never understood the hoopla surrounding it. I did find the Village to be an interesting film. But I thought Signs and the Lady in the Water were absolutely boring. But 'the Happening' is easily his best film, IMO. In fact, I think its a classic and far superior to unrealistic and silly apocalyptic films such as Will Smith's "I am Legend" and Spielberg's 'War of the Worlds'. The mystery of a mass suicidal apocalypse infesting the northeast cost of the US was very creepy and very realistic. The characters were sympathetic and often tragic-- especially the little girl's situation. And you actually felt for their safety rather than rooting for their demise. And Shyamalan's usual ironic twist at the end had a great sense of poetic justice. So I'd place this amongst the great apocalyptic films like:Night of the Living Dead, The Stand, The Omega Man, Dawn of the Dead (both versions), Testament, Panic in the Year Zero, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (the original), 28 Days Later, The Day of the Triffids (BBC mini-series), The Mist,
It happens to be happening something wrong with Shayamalan
posted on 28 Aug 2009Well folks,I don't know exactly how to start talking about The Happening. In fact, I don't even know if I should start writing about something so BAD. However, I guess I'm gonna do it, just to let you know how wrong I was when I thought I would enjoy it.I really don't know what is HAPPENING with director M. Night Shayamalan these last years. He just seems to be messing around with audiences or, if not, proving us all how urgently he needs to improve his writing/directing skills. I can recall "THE VILLAGE" and "THE LADY OF THE WATER" which, in my opinion, were ENTIRELY GARBAGE. And now comes another rubbish masterpiece, with a new "label" and nice presentation, but with the same hollow skeleton as the past ones.In the beginning, The Happening seemed somehow promising, but in the very next minutes I noticed something wrong about it. The characters were empty, boring, unstyled and raw. Actings were unnatural, theatrical and very, very poor. Filming sequences were also too bad, giving me a perfect feeling of a low budget movie done just to bring easy money from all those out there who normally love a little bit of nonsense mystery or suspense. Finally, regarding the plot, I think that The Happening has a very bad storyline. In fact, I risk myself to say that this movie has no storyline at all. Shayamalan has just lead us (and probably himself too) to a promising story with no end or pre-thought sequence, resulting in a very random plot with stupid scenes, characters and inconsistencies.I'm not gonna talk about the story (believe me that you would be happier if told you about it and spoiled it now), but I assure you it is one of the poorest I've ever seen. In fact, I can't recall one single piece of work from this director that I have liked. However, I must admit that his titles are catching for sure (lol).If I had to describe this movie in a very short sentence, I'd say it is BAD, AMATEUR-LIKE and BORING. During the play time I was always hoping to see the credits part, but the movie kept going on to massacre me. I can't deny that I was professionally led to see it, even if it wasn't worth of. Mr. M. Night Shayamalan did it again - he made me buy a ticket to see his new movie. Well, after all I guess it wasn't that bad; finally I understood that I will not try any another of his upcoming titles, for sure. NEVER, EVER!
The Pre-Release Negative Buzz was Deserved. Sorta.
posted on 28 Aug 2009I never understood why critics (and audiences) were so hard on M. Night Shyamalan. I honestly believe that Lady in the Water and The Village are his best films (sue me!). That's why I overlooked The Happening's negative buzz, and went to see it on its opening day. To my surprise, critics were right (for the most part), and Shyamalan has disappointed me for the first time.The idea of an airborne toxic that causes people to unconsciously hurt themselves is genuinely original, creepy, and effective. Fittingly, Shyamalan comes up with the scariest death scenes in recent memory. My fiancée had to cover her eyes multiple times. Moreover, The Happening has a couple of excellent jump scares. Needless to say, Shyamalan is still excellent at composing his scenes. And as usual, James Newton Howard's score rocks. Unfortunately, that's were the good news ends.The very first scene of The Happening puts you right in the middle of the action. But that's probably why the film runs out of steam so quickly. This should've been a 75-80 minute film. Basically, nothing happens in the second half. We're just introduced to a couple of freaky, freaky characters. Mrs. Jones in particular did get huge laughs at my showing. And BTW, I was perfectly fine with the explanation the film came up with. After all, this is a super-natural thriller.Shyamalan was always able to get excellent performances out of his leads. I'd even say that's his trademark. However, Mark Wahlberg totally lets him down. He was terrible. He has same look on his face whether he's scared, joking, or thinking. The tone of his voice rarely changed as well. His turn single-handedly eliminates the emotional impact of a lot of scenes. Remember Lady in the Water's Healing scene? I cried like a baby when I saw that. The Happening has a similar "redemption" scene, but frankly, I couldn't care less. Deschanel was even worse. She was just standing there, reciting her lines. She got better near the end though.
The Debate in my Mind, Post-The Happening
posted on 28 Aug 2009I am trying to determine if I found this to be the weakest of Shyamalan's films, or if I still hold Lady in the Water in that rank.Lady was fairly dreadful, BUT it did feature the enormously good acting prowess of Giamatti, a saving grace. This latest venture stars Mark Wahlberg, who has turned in his most unforgivably laughable performance of his career. The guilt is not entirely Wahlberg's. There's not a single, well-performed moment from any of the talent in this movie. It's a shame, but this entire cast stopped, look confused, and walked backwards through the entire film.I am indeed a Shyamalan fan. I even enjoyed The Village...these last two works of his though...ugh!It is not often when I'll honestly think to myself, "There's 2 hours I'll never get back". This is the second time I've thought that for Shyamalan's recent work, and a second time for Wahlberg too (first time being Planet of the Apes).Just plain embarrassing. I'm not of the complaint department that screams for them to stop allowing Shyamalan to make films, but good God this dude needs to get it right again...quickly!
Hindu Philosophy 101
posted on 26 Aug 2009I'm not being bias here but I think one has to be raised with an eastern way of thinking or have some knowledge of it in order to appreciate a film like The Happening. For example, I'm a first generation American born Indian and I grew up hearing that we should respect all beings including plants even the microscopic beings we can't see. This means we shouldn't curse, fornicate like cats and dogs, and be violent with each other. Essentially, everything we do and say can affect our environment in either a positive or negative way, depending the way we behave. If you notice the film follows a formula in which the deadly wind follows those who break these rules...that is why if you are in a smaller group the chances of being around someone who is a threat is less. I also heard that Mahatma Gandhi used to tip toe around his house because he knew that with each footstep he was killing dust mites and other microscopic bugs underneath his feet. This may or may not be true but the point is that I can believe it because I was raised with this non-violent approach to life. It's a very Hindu and Buddhist philosophy that is new to people and hence, it is misunderstood. What M. Night is trying to say in his film is simple...respect nature. My mother once pointed out to me that one should be like a tree. At first I didn't understand because my environment (Georgia) didn't allow me to think outside of the box and that kind of talk would get you beat up because people would think you are a pagan or a tree hugging hippie. What my mother was trying to say is that nature deals with anything thrown at it and it never asks for anything in return. It just gives. A tree can go through the harsh winter and come back with leaves during the spring. I liked the film and for a change something we usually ignore day to day is speaking out. See the brilliant irony in it? The plants are fighting back. That's genius. It's not zombies or mutants. It's something we can't touch or run from. The only problem with the film was that I think M. Night should have put a little old Asian man or woman saying things about nature instead of the Caucasian guy eating hot dogs. It would have been more effective and the characters would have at least seen his advice as wise from an eastern point of view instead of cuckoo in the head. It's easier to hear Bruce Lee say something about nature versus any Tom, Dick, or Harry because it is coming from someone's mouth who is raised with that philosophy and it's more acceptable. Even Quentin uses an old Oriental man to say all the wise things in Kill Bill. Using an old and wise Asian man or woman would have reinforced the idea of showing respect to nature and perhaps by the end of the film, people would have began taking better care of the earth. Instead, the movie ends where it begins...with a bunch of clueless people walking around like a bunch of dopes not caring about anyone or anything. Perhaps, M. Night wanted to keep it unresolved...showing us that to err is human.
Interesting movie
posted on 26 Aug 2009The first opinion on this movie was given to me by my friend and he didn't like it, so I didn't expect too much of it. And I liked it. What I liked about the film was the idea it was based upon. I wouldn't characterize it as a horror or a suspense movie, so one shouldn't expect the standard effects in it, although there are some. The movie should be seen more as a awareness story. So, if you think of it in that sense it is not a bad movie, and since there are no terrorists, no aliens, no nuclear apocalypse or crime plot, that fact makes it original in a way. It's not a "deep thought" movie, it is a "what if" movie and I think some of the questions it asks are good questions. As of the human reaction in these kinds of stress situations, I don't think anyone can be certain what would be typical, generally people who survive concentrate on surviving and everybody reacts it his/her own way, so I disagree with the previous viewer's comment about the characters' behavior being a mistake in the script. The actors were good, maybe not a perfect cast, but I have no problem with Wahlberg, he was not the one I'd change. I liked the effort for characters looking like everyday people, not too pretty and physically outstanding, yet interesting enough.
Bad.
posted on 24 Aug 2009First off, let me say that I have seen a lot of bad movies; but this one far out-shoots the rest in that category.This is one of the worst movies I've seen in a long time. First off, let's start with Mark Wahlberg. He has the exact same facial expression in every single scene. Whether he's in the train station, car, talking to a woman, he always has that surprised, somewhat disoriented look on his face. And to add to that, he has absolutely no emotion in his lines. Could a movie ever have more monotones? You disappoint me Shyamalan.Okay, maybe the Happening has SOME good things to talk about. Man-killing plants that produce neuro-transmitting disabling toxins? Cool. Tasteful shots of suicide? Pretty awesome.But unfortunately, the movie moves into a steep decline and eventually into a bottomless pit as the director chooses to include more shots of the uneventful Wahlberg and his wife, whom I will not even bother talking about, neither will I the rest of the actors.To wrap up: don't watch it. It's a complete waste of your time. It certainly was for me.
It's going to kill Shyamalan's career for good!
posted on 24 Aug 2009I had such high hopes for this one since I like those Stephen King like horror-mystery-sci fi-pieces. Unfortunately Shyamalan hasn't learned from his previous super-flop "Girl in the water" and again delivers us a mildly suspenseful thriller about something attacking people on the US east coast, turning them into suicide candidates all around. Mark Wahlberg plays a teacher in the middle of it all fleeing the town to the countryside in the hope that the evil something has not reached the boonies yet. So far so good, the plot is nothing super impressive but promising enough to entertain genre-fans like me. And the trailer looked promising, too. But Shyamalan still is in preaching mode, something he took up with "Signs". He loads up his picture up with meaningful nonsense dialogue (unfortunately he again wrote the thing as well as directing and producing it). That is something which takes you out of the suspense again and again. And that is NOT good since one realizes the major shocking scenes already were in the trailers... In the second act he not only loads "The Happening" up with more meaningful, clunky dialogue but even more weird, meaningful characters who simple DO NOT work. As the movie goes on and on it becomes more and more ridiculous with sloppy mistakes in simple logic: Everybody is infected and dies, but TV stations and radio keep broadcasting, Wahlberg asks his female companion if she has cellphone service in the middle of it all - surprise! The world is in chaos, or so I thought! No wonder the cells don't work! DAAA! With the third act introducing a granny from hell in some remote farmhouse "The Happening" finally collapses. It's a true shame since we so far could accept it as a b-level horror-thriller with little blood but at least some honest attempts for suspense. But granny doesn't make sense, the way our heroes behave towards her makes even less sense and is totally unbelievable... And by that time one just wants to grab the director by the throat and scream into his face: "Leave me alone with your somewhat strange and condescending philosophy of life and the world! You're the only one who believes in it! Spare your audience!" One last thing about the score by James Newton Howard, a great talent in terms of movie scores. This time he's so over the top with his music it's just annoying. He pumps emotions into every scene maybe because he knew the movie itself couldn't deliver them...it's just unbearable. "The Happening" unfortunately could end Shyamalans career. After this one couldn't blame any studio for rejecting working with him.
A character driven movie with shallow characters.
posted on 24 Aug 2009Although I found the subject matter in the film engaging, I felt that Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel were miscast in their respective roles. Their shallow acting, except for a very few convincing moments, took the punch out of this movie. For me, I found the extras and minor characters more convincing; but for them, the movie would not have been engaging at all! The acting done by the couple who owned the green house, was especially good and they should have been the main characters as their relationship-their acting-was more convincing. The lady the main characters meet in the old house was also extremely well acted and riveting. The talents of the little girl and John laguzamo were also under used. But when it came to Mark and Zooey's performance, the air just went out of the balloon; no deep emotive content and very disconnected from what was happening. And deep emotive content is what was needed in this film, Mark and zooey would have taken the heart out of Sixth Sense, Signs, and Unbreakable; movies requiring mature acting; even the Village would not have survived. So M Night's character driven movie lacked just that, the characters to truly leave you with the impact of what was happening!
Jesus and M. Night Shyamalan
posted on 24 Aug 2009This last movie may have been the last time I ever get excited at the advertisement of a new M. Night Shyamalan picture. (Unless reviews of future films are stellar.)Other people have enjoyed Shyamalan's output even less than me. I very much enjoyed his THE SIXTH SENSE, UNBREAKABLE, and, to a lesser extent, SIGNS.Most people I've talked with hated THE VILLAGE and the LADY IN THE WATER--or whatever it was called. Awful movie.To make a comparison, like the music of the group Counting Crows, the films of Shyamalan have gone steadily downhill--each one worse than the last.... but still watchable and somewhat enjoyable.If Shyamalan doesn't reinvent and improve his screen writing skills quickly, his movies will soon dip under the box office waterline to become exclusively direct-to-video releases.Certainly we now know that Shyamalan is not the cinematic modern-day equivalent of Hitchcock that he was touted to be just a few short years ago.Another reason that he may soon be no longer a fixture at the Cineplex is that he has shown himself to be an adherent of the new extremist religion: the anti-Christian pro-Environment "Green" cult."THE HAPPENING" is a terrible title for a movie, I was thinking, as I paid for my ticket to the Christie Digital Presentation at the Carmike Cinema box office. (Powers and Pulsar Drive.) I went out to the movies alone last Monday afternoon, and I was the only one in the theater until, a couple minutes before the show started, three women, maybe in their thirties, walked in.If you've read the book "Hollywood Worldviews," by Brian Godawa, then you know where I'm coming from as I analyze this film.The premise of the film is as insulting to humans in general, as it is transparent: the Environment, (specifically trees and vegetation), takes its revenge on a mostly non-Environmentally friendly humanity by exuding a deadly virus into the air that causes people to commit suicide in spectacular ways. (Our "heroes," the Environmentalists, are granted immunity by their "God," The Environment, of course.)Yes, I find this an aggressive and offensive and politicized premise, indeed.I have just described the entire film, whose main source of suspense and fear is wind blowing in the tall green grass. Very ineffective. (But very pleasing, I am sure, to the studio execs counting the cost to make this film.) To add to the offensiveness that something like a TWISTER never had, Shyamalan makes the only really creepy, mean and villainous character in the movie a Christian woman who has a wall in her house covered in Christian crosses and paintings of biblical scenes. After Shyamalan shows a wall full of her Christian art, this evil creepy Christian woman smashes her head into the windows of the house repeatedly, killing herself. To me, this was the very image of Shyamalan's contempt for Christianity.Yes, believe it or not, I find that offensive.(In the fairly recent film, SUNSHINE, the villain aboard the spaceship is also a fanatical man who believes in God.)The strong believers in God are almost always the bad guys in films nowadays.Certainly in the Christian world, there are crazies and hypocrites and televangelists (no wait, I repeat myself), but, mostly, religion and faith, looked at socially, are positive elements in people's lives.The is no real suspense, drama, or other deep meaning in THE HAPPENING.I'd avoid it like you would avoid a flesh-eating virus...Unless, of course, you enjoy that sort of thing.
Offensive and been done before.
posted on 24 Aug 2009There is nothing scary about this movie except that it has an audience of some fans out there who find it entertaining. Is this M. Night Shyamalan's entry into the current genre of torture porn? These comments come from a seasoned (42 years old) horror fan who found this movie more offensive than anything else, and I have defended "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" for over 30 years to people from all walks of life. TMC is certainly sedate to the genre films of today, but I am making the point that I am not a squeamish. I have found worth in a lot of extreme cinema. Suicide is not scary it's pathetic and sad. There is NO possible way plant produced neurotoxins could make people kill themselves. I can maybe see zombied people being unable to prevent being killed in accidents and hurting others, but doing it. The explanation is stupid. M. Night needs to read more about the human brain. Suicide is a thought related process, meaning they need to be aware on some level of the act. His self preservation malfunction is no excuse. The creative ways these victims commit suicide is an exercise in tasteless cinema. Did M. Night see the Japanese movie "Kairo" (Pulse)? In this movie, there was a mysterious global happening of mass suicides being caused by dead people luring the living to the other side. You may ask, isn't that as impossible as plants making people commit suicide? Maybe so, but it was certainly less gruesome not focusing on gore. I just read that Stephen King liked this movie. I can believe that since much of his work is recycled ideas. Sorry M. Night you lost most of us with "Signs." It was the sign to us that you were on your way out as our future Hitchcock. Here's an idea, mass groups of theater goers all walk in front of cars after see a movie because they feel ripped off. It could be a global happening.
One simple message at a time
posted on 30 Aug 2009As a Shyamalan fan I have an almost automatic bias. I love all his films including the infamous Lady in the Water. The reason is that he always brings something unique to the able. I believe what messes up the perception of his films are the way that they are marketed. All of his films are simple dramas covered with a touch of science fiction.With that said I disagree with most critics when they say the first half was the better of the film. The first 20 minutes have cringe worthy dialogue but some cool deaths. Things that detract from this film are some badly rendered sound affects(the gun shots), and the odd score(though it improves at the end.) Now onto the things that are good, I am a drama person and I know where nights coming from. Though I am an atheist I appreciate nights religious and spiritual overtones because there in total context with the situations. Wahlberg is sometimes stiff but he has his moments, especially towards the end. Zooey seems kind of odd but too lovable to hate. But the my favorite person in the film is Leguizamo, who brings a very likable nature to his character and I wish he had been in the rest of the film. This film is a kind of throwback to twilight zone and old school b-movie horror films but it has shyamalans in it everywhere. The throwback redeems the score up to a point though I wish it had been toned down. There are some unique ways people kill themselves. But what I appreciate most is that the situation is a kind of scientific possibility and I think thats what makes the film. Never have grass and trees seemed more threatening then when wind is just blowing. People are gonna hate this film but they are gonna turn to another mind numbing super- hero movie (The Hulk) and love it to death, (Don't get me wrong I wanna see Dark Knight badly, but at least its actually has some roots grounded in reality and suspense). But what I love about Nights films is that they always have a reason to exist, and this one does too.