Yes, absolutely. Audiences will remain split over M. Night Shyamalan. One, the newer generation or Millennials are unwitting to who Shyamalan is and his previous films. They did not have to suffer or endure the turbulent times of the early 2000’s when Shyamalan made films consistently. People bought tickets wanting that good old feeling from The Sixth Sense and in return received Signs — alien hate is real, The Village — maybe too much twist in the twist ending, and Lady in the Water — too much talking, no ghosts.
Movie goers today are unaware of the seesaw ride Shyamalan put us through after The Sixth Sense debut at the 2003 Cannes Festival (the movie tied with Captain Conan that year for the top prize). Shyamalan was heralded as the next Alfred Hitchcock or some offshoot of the famous British Master of Suspense. We expected each film he produced after Sixth Sense to frightened the bejeezus out of us with his shrillmatic style. However, that didn’t happen. The thrill was gone but not necessarily eliminated.
Split Review
Much of my opinion is swayed by the ending and the fact that this is part of a series I wish Shyamalan would have explored years ago. Aside from that, I thought the movie was well put together with a convincing storyline and actors who really performed their parts well. There’s no doubt, Shyamalan, is a good filmmaker — watch The Happening with the sound off. He understands the camera and how to convey a certain ascetic used in conventional filmmaking. However, these storytelling techniques can often time obstruct the main idea of the film and how Act One smoothly transitions to Act Two and then drags in Act Three. Split is a good film. Good in the essence that it’s entertaining, well acted, and thought provoking but there was that time during the final act of the movie where scenes too long allowed the tension of the story to subside into a light drizzle of suspense with a possible chance of a plausible sequel.
Buckley
Betty Buckley is a famous broadway actress who plays the part of Dr. Flecther, Hedwigs therapist. Her interjected lectures within the film are meant to give audiences an understanding of the true complexities of dissociative identity disorder and how the scientific community rejects the notion of something almost supernatural as being beyond explainable. These segments often times interrupt the flow of the film but are necessary to understanding the inspiration of the subject matter. How the identities of people with this disorder can possess different physical attributes based on the personalities of the character.
McAvoy
McAvoy was excellent as the many characters he portrayed, although we only really saw like eight onscreen. This guy could hands down could deliver all twenty-two of the personalities hidden within this character, Hedwig. He is creepy and at times charming and other times a complete menace. But what you need to watch for, which is always key with anyone enacting a character with a dissociative identity disorder are the various ticks. The transitions from character to character when the camera never flinches. McAvoy was skillful at this and his performance is truly impressive.
Anya Taylor-Joy
It’s all about the eyes. Man, Anya Taylor-Joy can express many different emotions with just a look and simple part of the lips. And with M. Night Shyamalan’s still of filmmaking where he likes close-ups on faces and particularly the eyes, she the perfect casting as the damaged emo-teen who looks weak on the outside but possess a certain strength to enable her to think rationally during a tense situation as being kidnapped.
The Third Act Syndrom
Signs is as suspenseful of a film as The Six Sense; it was the reveal that audiences hated. Why show the aliens? I believe at the time I murmured those exact words. Difference is, I liked the movie. I really liked the movie — more than The Sixth Sense. Signs did not rely as heavily on the third act as The Sixth Sense but all the thematic elements included in those final scenes made for good heart palpitating moments. M. Night films rely heavily on the third act and sometimes it’s the third act where the story loses the momentum set by the entire film. I felt this way with Split as well. Where the last few moments of the movie were too long in duration and not as climatic as presumed by the build up of the aforementioned plot. Not that it was horrible or distracting but I did kinda loosen the tension my heart strings a bit before the big payoff that sent me giddy from the auditorium like a six year old child with one of those big-ass lollipops no one should ever eat.
Just Keeping Filming
I liken Split to a basketball metaphor: just keeping shooting or Finding Dori. Dori just kept swimming and in doing so she was able to retrace a path back to her family and to an explanation as to why she is the way she is — forgetful. And what’s left is the rest of her life and the many opportunities open to her after understanding her purpose. Now that’s only apropos, but it works for this analogy. M. Knight Shayamalan is a filmmaker, no doubt. And he just kept filming. No box office failure can take that away from him. You watch, 2015’s The Visit and this year’s Split and it’s on full display for all who pays to see. However, he’s not doing something new. He’s applied the same storytelling techniques notable to his style. The difference is, he’s not at the top; he’s an underdog again scrapping his way back into the conversation with a movie people enjoy and now it’s a success at the box office.
One Hit Wonder
Let’s be honest: To be “it” in Hollywood guarantees you work, and right now the “it” guy is M. Night Shyalaman. With the success of his movie, Split, he is at least secure for his next job which may or may not be a sequel to this film. But how much faith do we put into a relatively one hit wonder? Okay, two hit wonder. Signs actually did well at the box office although everyone (almost everyone hated it, okay the aliens).
“You fool me once, shame on you, you fool me twice shame on everyone who bought movie tickets in search for Sixth Sense.”
Sixth Sense was the only film that was both critically acclaimed and successful at the box office. But out of ten people you ask, I betcha two ever watched that movie more than once. It isn’t possible. The movie loses traction leading towards the big reveal ending that made the suspense narrative so effective. This style of storytelling is used throughout all movies written and directed by Shyalamalan, but unfortunately, he just couldn’t grasp audiences imagination so easily multiple times around.
“You fool me once, shame on you, you fool me twice shame on everyone who bought movie tickets in search for Sixth Sense.”
Success At The Box Office
The success of Split reminds me of that moment twenty something years ago when M. Night had Hollywood in the palm of his hands. He’s a sort of born again newcomer with the generation of the Sixth Sense now older with children who were their age when that movie first debut. Shyamalan doesn’t have to prove that he’s a filmmaker; he has to prove that his movies can pull in huge box office numbers. It sucks to say but that’s the given skepticism surrounding his track record; huge budgets and low attendance, which doesn’t easily convince many studios to put all their chips on the supernatural when horror movies or “thrillers” are a real hit and miss these days.
As fickle as it may seem, if your weird movie doesn’t make money at the box office then your weird movies don’t get made. You have to make other people’s movies that are out of your wheelhouse I.e. Avatar, The Last Airbender and After Earth; two failures that weren’t exactly all his fault but his fault none the less since he was the director and that’s the way the film crumbles. With Split, he struck gold, now what’s to follow is the true testament as to if the old and current generation of moviegoers will accept his stories as an entertainment their willingness to invest time and money into the creative oddball or genius who his M. Knight Shyamalan.
Out With The Old Keep With the Times
Either he’s smart or just going with the times. Found footage “horror” is a thing. Has been a thing for the past four or five years. Last’s years the visit. Piggybacked on that theme. Audiences love that. For many, it’s what horror is these days. But just for a moment, let’s consider two other films that came out that year, It Follows and Don’t Breathe. A little old with something new. That is using many old horror/thriller tropes but then adding that bit of difference that makes those movies something unlike much of what we’ve seen before.
The visit was good but it introduced nothing new to the genre. And Split was enjoyable as it was a well-told story. However, I can’t just credit the movie to being awesome based on pure merit. I may be swayed, as many, by the idea that this movie is a part of a whole that I would like to see come together with his next film. Psychological thriller encased within a teen horror movies.
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