The Happening(2008)
The Happening Genre: Drama/Sci-Fi Released: 2008
M. Night Shymalan really knows how to stir up your emotions but the The Happening leaves you feeling bi-polar, much like this quote. The movie contained some of the worst overacting I have ever seen, yet my stomach was in knots the entire film. Overall though, I was disappointed in the film because they ruined everything in the trailers. I will be the first to admit that I am a huge M. Night Shymalan fan. The dude, at least to me, is a modern day Alfred Hitchcock. HE IS NOWHERE NEAR as good as Hitchcock, so don't get me wrong there. I am just saying that he reminds me a lot of him. I will never forget the first time I saw The Sixth Sense. YOU ARE LYING if you said you saw that twist coming. There is no possible way you saw that ending coming unless you were told there was a twist so that you could look for cues. Shymalan has pretty much dug his own grave now because he is just known as the guy who does all the twists. There was a twist in Unbreakable, Signs and The Village. Then, he went on to do Lady in the Water where he pretty much mocked the audience and didn't give you a big giant twist. I thought that was genius. I know the movie was panned by everyone, but I enjoyed it, so deal with it. The Happening stars Mark Whalberg (The Departed, The Big Hit), John Leguizamo (The Pest, Empire), Zoey Deschanel (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Elf) and Ashlyn Sanchez (young television star).
This paragraph is usually reserved for the films plotline. While I will give you a VERY brief outline of the plot, I am going to keep this as short as possible. The biggest deal about Shymalan's films is that people want to know if he will have a twist at the end and what the heck is going on. The trailers for this film leave you asking, "What is happening to cause what we are seeing?" Based on the trailers, we all know that people are starting to kill themselves for a very mysterious reason. They explain that something is "happening" and it causes your body to go into stages where you can't speak right and you start feeling physical disorientation. The last stage is fatal, making you kill yourself. This is only happening in the North East region of the United States and no one knows why. Whalberg plays Elliot Moore, a high school science teacher in Philadelphia who wants to get out of the city and head to a different part of the country. He rounds up his wife (Deschanel), a fellow teacher named Julian (Leguizamo) and Julian's daughter, Jess. They all hop on a train to head out of the state. Let's just say that they can't get away from it! That's all I will say.
Overall, this movie really made me angry but the more I think about it the more feel disappointed in what I saw. I still kind of ODDLY liked it but not enough to say you need to go see it. I walked out NOT knowing to think. I literally text messaged my friends and said, "I have no idea what to think about what I just saw." It really made me feel bi-polar the entire film. The acting in this movie really bothered me. I couldn't tell if Shymalan was trying to get his actors to OVERACT on purpose. I honestly felt like the actors were reading the scripts for the first time that they were on screen. You should have seen my face when some of these characters were spouting off their lines. Even Whalberg had some really awkward dialogue. There was one particular character, a private in the military, who was overacting beyond belief. I just couldn't believe it. The question is; did Shymalan want that? If so, he is giving you a goofy movie that will terrify you. Is that genius or just dumb? I honestly don't the answer. The movie just leaves you really feeling like blah, but for some reason, its message will stick with you. He is obviously trying to make a point about something and I think it is a very valid point. Let's just say that you could compare Shymalan to a very powerful and famous person. I will not say who because that will give it away. You can email me at online.prabin@gmail.com to ask who I am talking about it, but make sure you see the movie first. I am giving the film a 2.5 BDK rating out of 5 because I do feel a little let down. I think the biggest reason this movie was hyped for me was the fact that it was R-rated and I was hoping he would pull off another good film. While the movie is interesting, I wouldn't waste your money in theatres to see it. All of the violent scenes you want to see have already been shown to you in the trailers. Wait for the rental/cable viewing on this one.
posted by bollywood review @ 6:29 AM
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