A.N.
This is as good as anything I've seen from MNS, and better than several of his films. I'd compare it to "Signs" in many ways. It has a mysterious atmosphere throughout and presents a subtle yet powerful concept of nature vs. Man.I watched it despite all the drones who panned it (including IMDb's editorializing with the "comedy" category). Some say the first half is good, then claim it deteriorated toward the end, but that makes no sense to me after seeing the whole thing. It has his typical dreamlike quality which somewhat intensifies, but it never seems cheesy, etc.Are the masses unsatisfied unless they absolutely know the enemy? My theory on the negative reviews is the psychology of refusing to be objective once a negative idea is planted, and/or anti-environmental mindsets that pervade America. A number of people will always scoff when human omnipotence is questioned.Be an original thinker, ignore the negative reviews and enjoy it for what it is.
ferbs54
Following the inanity of the borderline train wreck that was 2006's "Lady in the Water," writer/producer/director M. Night Shyamalan rebounded in a very big way with his next film, 2008's "The Happening." His contribution to the type of eco-horror film that was all the rage in the 1960s and '70s--I'm thinking of such films as 1963's "The Birds," 1972's "Frogs," 1977's "Kingdom of the Spiders" and 1978's "Swarm"...not to mention the little-seen 1976 Spanish classic "Who Can Kill a Child?"--the film seems to have divided his fan base and resulted in a bona fide critical flop of sorts. Indeed, the woman who I sit next to at work, a big admirer of film auteur Shyamalan, hated the film, although she professes a love for "Lady in the Water," a picture that I found to be both ridiculous and downright stupid. Go figure. THIS is why there is both vanilla AND chocolate out there, folks!In the film in question, what is at first perceived to be a bioterrorist attack occurs in NYC's Central Park, where droves of people are compelled to commit suicide in horrendous fashions. We then zoom in on Philadelphia schoolteacher Elliot Moore (very well played by the hugely likable Mark Wahlberg), who, along with his wife Alma (the pretty and kooky Zooey Deschanel), best friend and fellow teacher Julian (John Leguizamo) and his adorable daughter Jess (Ashlyn Sanchez), leaves the city by train after a similar attack occurs in their vicinity. Eventually, Julian strikes off on his own to search for his wife in Princeton, NJ, leaving his daughter in charge of the Moores, while it soon becomes apparent that this is NOT an instance of bioterror that has been afflicting the entire Northeast after all, but rather, a bizarre case of nature gone amok. The very trees are emitting a chemical--perhaps in an instance of self-defense--that has started to compel humans to do themselves in! (This action does not strike me at this particular moment as being all that far-fetched, afflicted as I am today with allergy symptoms brought on by tree pollen!) The Moores and Jess head into the wilds of the Pennsylvania countryside to escape the widespread violence, only to fetch up at the home of an isolated woman, one Mrs. Jones (Betty Buckley)...a demented biddy who, in retrospect, strikes the viewer as a warm-up for the demented oldsters in Shyamalan's 2015 film "The Visit." But even this isolated locale does not seem to be a safe haven against the arboreal threat that has suddenly arisen....Amazingly, "The Happening" was nominated for no less than four Golden Raspberry Awards--for Worst Picture, Worst Actor (Wahlberg), Worst Director and Worst Screenplay. In "Empire" magazine's list of the 50 Worst Films of All Time, the film came in at the #8 spot! Are these people kidding?!?! Have they never seen such films as "Blood Freak," "Dracula vs. Frankenstein," "The Astro-Zombies," "Horror of the Blood Monsters," "The Beast of Yucca Flats" and "The Worm Eaters"? THESE are truly horrendous and ineptly made pictures, worthy of anybody's contempt. But "The Happening"? Really? This film is expertly made and well acted by its cast of appealing players. It also looks terrific on the screen, is loaded with any number of suspenseful moments, is laced with pleasing bits of humor (my favorite: Elliot talking in fear to what turns out to be a plastic plant), and is capable of stunning the viewer by dint of a pleasing number of shock moments (such as the sight of one man offering himself up to the giant cats in the Philadelphia zoo, a young woman casually sticking a rather long hairpin into her neck, and the truly awesome spectacle of a half dozen construction workers blithely diving off the top of a building to their doom). The film is nowhere near as bloody as the 2001 Japanese stunner "Suicide Club" (how could it be?) but yet manages to startle and impress, nevertheless. And if the film does not provide one of Shyamalan's patented twist endings, it yet contrives to wind up on a note of not-so-unexpected pessimism. Like the Hitchcock film referenced above, a clear-cut explanation for the bizarre events in the film is never vouchsafed, and we are left to be content with these words of wisdom from the Wahlberg character: "There are forces at work beyond our understanding. To be a good scientist, you must have a respectful awe for the laws of Nature." And perhaps not so coincidentally, "respectful awe" was the feeling that this viewer was left with by the conclusion of this hugely impressive and effective film. Very much recommended....
Thomas Grant
*******************May Contain Major Spoilers*********************Okay this movie has way too many flaws that you ask yourself if it's intentional then you start to realize it really isn't it's just a bad movie. I really tried to pay attention to all the details to reconstruct the plot but it just does not make any sense. Why the plant caused most people around Mark Wahlberg and Zoey Deschanel to commit suicide but they spared Marky Mark, his Lady and the little girl. Nobody knows it's supposed to be a mystery in the world of M Night Shyamalan. Well guess what Mr Shyamalan your movie makes 0 sense and don't try to come up with that excuse that it's supposed to be a B Movie or mystery with a twist BS. No, this movie is just plain weird. The actors are acting strange. People around the main characters don't know how to act. This movie gets 0 out 10 for acting. 1 out 10 for plot twist and 0 for the script. The only good thing about this movie is that is shot properly like any other respectable movie but the actual content of the movie is terrible. This movie script and direction made Mark Wahlberg look like an extremely weak actor with some of the weirdest line deliveries i have ever seen. I think at that point M Night Shyamalan felt too confident with his film making style that he thought people would be fascinated with his piece of art. And what's up with M Night movie thinking they are better than they actually are except for the 6th Sense and Unbreakable i have not seen one solid Shyamalan movie. In unbreakable and the sixth sense the plot twist made sense and were very clever although they revolve around the supernatural. This one not so much we are just going along with Shyamalan film making. Bottom line don't watch this movie expecting much from it because there isn't. The plot doesn't make sense, the actors are terrible, the twist is revealed early on the movie even the way the plants are acting i mean the plants are just being plants for real there is no evidence those people dying is even related to the plant. Okay i stop this movie i just plain stupid at the end it's just a waste of time unless you are in to laugh at the incredibly bad acting in this movie it is really not worth your time.
