Movie Review: "The Happening"

OK, so if any of you know me very well, you know that I will drop whatever I'm doing to go see any movie made by M. Night Shyamalan. Love love LOVE his films. I had a few hours without the kids this past weekend and nearly had to push down old ladies and small children to satiate my need to see his newest flick, "The Happening." I liked it, but with caveats...

First of all, click on the title of the blog to jump over to the movie's official website. Now I'll give you my two-cents' worth:

• I love his movies because they actually require friction from more than two brain cells to watch and enjoy, unlike that of the, "American Pie," "There's Something About Mary," and, "Wedding Crasher," genre. There is actually a plot that I care about, almost always a problem to solve, and I don't get a migraine doing it.

• He almost always leaves clues or patterns laying around for the viewers to pick up. In "The Sixth Sense," with Bruce Willis and Haley Joel Osmont, there were at least two that I remember -- the color red and seeing a person's breath as if the air suddenly got very cold and their cheeks blush from the chilly air. "The Village" similarly had a pattern with the colors red and yellow, red in particular. I haven't seen, "Unbreakable," with Samuel L. Jackson and Bruce Willis, and I don't remember, "Signs," with Mel Gibson (and I think my other BFF, Joaquin Phoenix was in this, too. No kvetching, Jason!!), having much predicatability in this department. Actually, I see some similarities between this movie and "Signs." M. Night teased his faithful followers in, "Lady In The Water," by making us think we had solved his mystery and then turning it all jabber-wockied about three-fourths of the way into the movie, at which point it all comes together beautifully.

• He almost always makes a cameo appearance in his movies. I don't remember if there was one in, "The Sixth Sense," but he was in "Signs," "The Village," and "Lady In The Water." HOWEVER! I was keeping an eye out for him, even amongst the extras and seas of faces and still never found him. Let me know if you watch "The Happening" and find him in there...

• He spins a good yarn. He writes, produces, and directs all of his own films. He's not a blockbuster kinda guy like Spielberg, Coppola, or Lucas, but he's very good at what he does. He is an artist who excels at a craft, not at turning a buck. He surrounds himself with (usually) good acting (although I can't say I really bonded with Marky Mark Wahlberg in this one) and quality individuals. I can't tell you how much I loved Paul Giamati and the girl who was in both LITW and TV. In fact, LITW began as a bedtime story he made up for his daughters, who encouraged him to make it into a movie. Thus, it has the element of fantasy combined with enough reality to make it really good fiction.

Here are the caveats:

• It was very short, like only an hour and a half or so. It had a good plot but felt like it didn't take enough time to develop. I liked the fact that the very first scene, within the first two minutes of the movie, you were immediately plopped in the middle of the serious driving force of the movie. Aggressive and very cool.

• I hated the actress who played Marky Mark's wife. She couldn't act worth a squat. She did a great job portraying someone who doesn't have a lot going on in the brains department. Marky Mark himself could've been a lot better. I haven't seen many of his movies, but I hear tell that he's actually quite good. I think I'd rather see him as an antagonist and really ripping some "stuff" up. He was a little too "goody two-shoes" for me in this movie. Considering that he was a high school biology teacher, his character could've and should've flexed a little more intellectual muscle. The guy who played the quirky botanist was excellent, as was his wife.

• Overall, this one just didn't challenge me enough. I still liked it, though. I think my all-time favorite in this category is probably LITW. I really wish that he had gone a little more in-depth with the plot and the problems between the characters.
  
  Lastly, here's the official trailer. It's well-done and gives away none of the secrets, in true M. Night form...
  
  

If you get scared easily or have to go to your Bible to talk yourself off the ledge after watching a movie through your fingers because of seeing scary images, take a walk over to "Kung Fu Panda" and save yourself the experience. I won't lie -- this is a disturbing movie. But I will say this: it's just a story. There are so many other things going on in real-life that turn my stomach much, much more than this. If you were scared of the zombies in, "I Am Legend," but you were basically able to watch and enjoy that movie, then go for it. You'll like this. If you boycotted Dan Brown's book, "Da Vinci Code," because you thought he was blasphemous and couldn't just read it for the FICTION that it was (seeing as it is located in the FICTION section of the store and not NON-FICTION), then again, this may not be the movie for you. If you want a movie that is a little more challenging than "Hannah Montana" or "Cheetah Girls," then get yer popcorn and Milk Duds ready...