Movie Review of M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening

M. Night Shyamalan is back, although maybe not in the form many had wished he would return. With The Happening, the Signs writer/producer/director gives a shot at a slightly different genre, that of the disaster movie. Blending horror, disaster, and family drama, The Happening is light-years beyond Shyamalan's painful Lady in the Water.

The film's plot revolves around a bizarre scenario in which human beings are attacked by an unseen force. But rather than an active attack, the unknown enemy causes people to first lose orientation then commit acts of gruesome suicide. (This is not a spoiler as the movie opens with such a scene.)

Mark Wahlberg plays the part of Elliot, a high-school science teacher whose marriage is on the rocks. Elliot and his wife are forced to flee the city after an evacuation is called following the initial deaths, and the two of them are accompanied by Elliot's longtime friend and his daughter. Without revealing any more of the plot, it is safe to say that this group finds out quite quickly that the attackers are not confined.

Shyamalan has definitely traveled into some grim territory with this one, as it is his first R-rated film. He is obviously quite aware of this fact and takes gleeful advantage of it on more than one occasion. But thankfully he shows enough restraint not to venture into the unbelievable gore territory of modern horror, leaving this story pretty grounded in reality, or at least his reality. However, I must say the lawnmower scene was pushing it and would have seemed overdone were it not for the, Did he really just put that on film? shock value.

Another element this film has going for it is the leading talent. Wahlberg is, as usual, likeable and sympathetic, and Deschanel gives a unique performance as his wife. The real surprise comes from the subtle yet powerful performance of newcomer Ashlyn Sanchez, the little girl around whom a great deal of the plot revolves.

In the end, this film certainly will not rank alongside The Sixth Sense or Signs, but it is quite good for its genre and a unique spin on the formula. Audiences would do well to give it a chance and not attempt to compare it alongside Shyamalan's hyper-supernaturally-oriented works, as the film will disappoint those looking for something that just is not there. Hopefully this is just a taste of what is to come now that Shyamalan has unapologetically ventured into R-rated territory.

As a disaster/popcorn flick, you won't find a better one than The Happening.