Seen on: June 13, 2008
The players: Director: M. Night Shyamalan, Writer: M. Night Shyamalan, Cast: Mark Wahlberg, John Leguizamo, Zooey Deschanel
Facts of interest: The film was shot in sequence in 44 days.
The plot: A group of people struggle for survival when a mysterious suicidal plague occurs without warning.
Our quick thoughts: What was perhaps one of the most intriguing trailers I have seen this summer turned about to be a thriller without a lot of thrills. Yes, it is eerie and quite comical, but what began as an original idea turned out to be a rather stagnant disappointment.
Shyamalan’s first flick to earn an R rating does not show a boost in the suspense or quality of the movie. While this rating does allow for some disturbing killings, it is not gruesome enough to create a certain shock factor and not terrifying enough to be compared to other thrillers of same rating.
Past Shyamalan films such as his 1999 film “The Sixth Sense” accomplished more suspense with a PG-13 rating, let alone having better developed characters and story lines. I would say this R rating did little more for this movie than draw in a crowd hoping for a terrifying and bloody body count.The first scenes of the film are quite shocking and provide an intriguing and disturbing hook, but after the initial shock there is little left than a fledgling story line with characters to match.
The casting of the film is adequate though. Mark Wahlberg offers a pretty solid performance as the protagonist schoolteacher, but there is little chemistry with Indie-rocker/actress Zooey Deschanel, who provides a rather hollow depiction of the schoolteacher’s distant wife.
It is not only that the acting is not believable and shallow, but the writing is off. The dialogue and demeanor of the characters does not draw the viewer into the story, but it instead points out that they are, well, acting. While there is some awkward, off-the-wall comedy built into the writing, it is not charming enough to save this would-be thriller from mediocrity.
Freaky quote: "There appears to be an event happening.” – Alan Ruck
The final word: Shyamalan has been known to make films that chill the audience to the bone at every twist and turn. However, in “The Happening” there is little besides a few chilly scenes and an original story idea that misses the mark. Sadly, most will leave this botched thriller thinking, “What happened?”
Article by Aaron Osborne