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The
Happening (2008)
  
Review
At the start of his
career, M. Night Shyamalan could do nothing wrong. His
first three films, The
Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, and
Signs
were groundbreaking, trendsetting chillers of immaculate cinematic
brilliance. His greatest achievement was his consistent ability to create
distinctive, chilling atmospheres. At a time when horror was dominated by mechanical, unremarkable
fare in which uncreative writers and
directors relied on cheap sound effects and jump scares, Shyamalan was a breath of
fresh air. His terribly disappointing
Lady in the
Water two years ago was arguably the first time the
director failed to conjure his trademark chilling atmosphere. With The
Happening, he proves that he still has the touch.
That being
said, The
Happening has inherited some of Lady in the Water's
weaknesses. The difference is that they are less damaging to the
overall effect this time. The
acting is uneven, to say the least, and when Shyamalan sticks his camera
in the performers' faces for lengthy dramatic effect, it can be hard to take him
seriously. There is often a whiff of self-importance in Shyamalan's work – a quality
that at times gives The Happening a classic B-movie feel
– but what a B-movie it turned out to be! Tarantino would
probably have loved the tone he creates here, as we
are presented with one of the eeriest thriller premises since... well, since
Shyamalan was last in this kind of form. The narrative structure is
reminiscent of last year's
I Am Legend, but I have no trouble
enjoying such spine-chilling, delicately apocalyptic stories two years
in a row. Whether a film like this is scientifically accurate is of less
importance; what matters is that it is able to present itself as relevant. And even if The Happening
lacks the polish of Francis
Lawrence's film, it matches it on tension and suspense.
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