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The Happening
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Warning: Spoiler Alert
M. Night Shyamalan is one of the few directors who asks his audience questions like, “Are you the kind that sees signs, sees miracles?” It’s why some Christians feel a certain loyalty to him — because his films acknowledge the reality of evil, the power of good, and the existence of a supernatural power. In Unbreakable, a man finds purpose in protecting the innocent. The Village testified to humans’ inability to hide from evil. Signs told the story of an ex-pastor who regained his faith when “someone up there, watching out for them” saved his family.
The critics are less and less thrilled with Shyamalan, however; and I think they’re right. Lady in the Water (at least the parts I hazily remember) lacked the artistic precision of Sixth Sense. The Happening is even worse.
People walking through Central Park suddenly start muttering gibberish, freeze and then kill themselves. High school science teacher Elliot Moore (an earnest Mark Wahlberg) and his emotionally estranged wife Alma (the appropriately wide-eyed Zooey Deschanel) flee Philadelphia as the terror spreads from New York City throughout the north-east.
The hypotheses: Bio-terrorists have released a neurotoxin that removes people’s inhibitions toward self-destruction, or plants now see humans as predators on the planet and are fighting back. (Guess which hypothesis is correct? Hint: This movie has no twist ending.)
The movie is grisly (rated R for violence), and it gets more nauseating as Shyamalan dreams up especially creative ways for people to off themselves — piercing their necks with hair sticks, feeding themselves to lions, bashing their heads into windows. The climax – a scene where Wahlberg and Deschanel slowly cross a field of grass to die in each other’s arms – is as embarrassing as the ending is deflating.
Shyamalan has already proved his deft use of symbolism and his ability to create a film with layers of meaning. But The Happening is simply, disappointingly glib. Critics have faulted Shyamalan for his occasionally grating moralism, but at least his earlier movies proffered some thoughtful insights into human nature. As The Plank’s James Kirchick notes, The Happening just has one “morally appalling” premise: “The mere existence of the human race is a cause for great shame.”
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Topic: Movies & TV, Reviews |  |
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Keywords: M. Night Shyamalan, Mark Wahlberg, The Happening review, Zooey Deschanel |  |
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Soul searching
I used to think Zooey Deschanel was a pretty good actress, but this movie finished killing off that misconception. It’s like she doesn’t even attepmt to act appalled or frightened or anything. She just kind of pronounces the lines in that deadpan of hers. Oh, well.
I haven’t seen this movie, and probably wouldn’t have anyway, but your writeup needs an early and prominent Spoiler Alert, Alisa. I’m kinda doubting all those plot details are readily available in trailers.
RR–Agreed. I was astonished to learn they died!! And we know this??
As part of the largest film protest in cinematic history, I think *everyone* should see this movie and then walk out and ask for a refund…And I think you should write to Rupert Murdoch and ask for your money back.
Someone has to pay for this movie, I can’t see why it has to be the consumer.
TheNotHappening.com
Sounds like he really didn’t steal this idea from Stephen King.
I’m speaking generally so I don’t know if this would be considered spoilers or not:
Saw it last night. There was a scene early on where in the discussion a student makes a general-principle statement. I whispered to my son: I bet this is a clue to the movie.
Sure enough, it was a clue with the subtly of a bowling ball that signaled where the movie eventually went.
Nevertheless, it did keep my interest for two hours though it had no real “I see dead people” moment.
I was left, not with a sense of shame, but with a sense of hopelessness. If life is so random and fatalistic and things that we don’t understand can just wipe us out capriciously, I really wouldn’t be very excited about having a child.
I didnt think it was that bad. For the element in which was causing the deaths, it wasnt an easy job making it that creepy/disturbing. As outdeep said, itll keep your attention for 2 hours, its just not going to give a surprise ending or twist.
But then again I was disappointed thats all it was as far as the cause. Sometimes I think Shyamalan does stupid things like this just to show how stupid the thought line and reaction is.
I like Zooey as an actress as well (since Elf anyway), but dont be too harsh on her cause Wahlberg didnt have a good role in this either. Maybe it was the lack of profanity (in most of his roles) but my favorite line was “Look, its a house” A science school teacher just seemed out of place for him. I kept waiting for him to pull out a glock…
Oh and I’m a 28 year old male who liked Lady in the Water, cause its nice to have a bedtime story once in awhile
that and the only death in that movie was a movie critic…
And I agree that Alisa needs to have a spoiler alert, because the previews dont reveal much.
SPOILER ALERT BIG TIME:
I completely disagree with your take on this movie. I found it to be jam-packed with symbolism, and a message totally opposite of what you thought. I thought it had a message totally in keeping with our Christian world view. I found it to be a message of the preciousness of human life. And it was a commentary on what we are doing to one another in the name of environmental protection. The title is THE HAPPENING, because it is what is happening right now in our world, albeit in a less fantastic way, hence the symbolism. The fact that all the people were killing themselves symbolized the fact that we are killing ourselves by some of our foolish policies.
There are many scenes that depict this, but I will highlight one. There is a scene where the two main characters along with two boys come to a boarded up house and find that there are people inside. They ask for some food from them, to which they refuse out of fear for the invisible toxin. Things escalate, and they kill the two boys in an over-the-top violent way (By the way, all the violence in this movie is over the top, as you described, so we will be shocked and sickened by the deaths rather than numbed like we are when real people are dying because of our irresponsibility). Anyway, where in our world can we see people being refused food from those who have it, causing starvation (death) out of fear of an invisible toxin? How about what World has written on many times - things such as food shortages due to our obsession with ethanol, and other policies triggered by a fear of an invisible toxin? Many of the scenes depict such symbolism.
I also found it cool that the way to survive the toxin in the movie was to separate from the group. That is exactly what I think we need to do for our generations to survive as well - get away from groupthink and stop discarding science and facts about the environment for fear of a half of degree of increased temperature or something like that.
The movie ended with the pregnancy of the main character, to emphasize that the generations are at stake, and we have a responsibility to them. There are tons more things I could comment on like the issues that the individual characters are dealing with, but overall, I found this a brilliant movie, and one that has stuck with me a long time after seeing it. I think movies like this need to be viewed more carefully.