Movie Review - Split
This movie is actually one of the newer Shayamalan movies that is surprisingly not bad. In fact it is actually really good! The USP of Shyamalan's movies have always been the twist-endings that you don't see coming. And boy, does this movie have a twist!(more on that later and don't worry, no spoilers). Read on to find out why this movie is genuinely interesting...Let me start off with the plot. Some random creep kidnaps three teenage girls after attacking the father of one of the girls. But he is not just any creep. As if kidnapping is in itself not scary enough, the kidnapper is a man with 23 different personalities with apparently the 24th personality on its way. That is all there is to it really. Simple but effective. How effective? That depends upon the performances. And the performance was very, very good!
James McAvoy nails the role(s) to a T! I mean this guy has always been a great actor as evident from movies such as Narnia, The Last King of Scotland, The X-Men franchise, Wanted and so on. But here he proves that he could be put to even better use... and Shyamalan did just that! One thing to note, however, was that though they claim that he has 23 distinct personalities, only 5 or 6 are shown due to obvious time constraints. Showing all those personalities will turn this movie into a series (which I would definitely watch btw). But even those few personalities, McAvoy pulled off without a doubt. I especially liked Hedwig, the persona of a 9 year old kid. McAvoy's talent can clearly be seen especially in this role. His sharp stares during close up shots are creepy as hell and you feel a chill down your spine every time he looks into your eyes even as cute Hedwig. Hats off to that man! The other cast members were decent. I mean, anybody could have played three teenage victims. The lead protagonist does a fairly decent job, though she felt one-dimensional in spite of having a disturbing back-story. Again, a trademark of Shyamalan's movies by this point. The lady who plays the psychiatrist is again one of the better performances in the movie. She feels really concerned about Kevin's (The kidnapper, the actual person with MSPD) mental health. She genuinely looks and sounds like a psychiatrist with years of experience and you can tell she is committed to that role. Props to that actress as well.
The pacing is a bit slow, again, atypical of Shyamalan's films but you can clearly tell, he has put great effort into it. That being said, I was engrossed throughout the entire movie which is usually not the case for me when it comes to a slow movie(The Lady in the Water was a lullaby for me). Like I mentioned earlier, Shyamalan uses tight close-ups (in most of his films) which are extremely effective, especially in this case as it felt a bit claustrophobic and uneasy (just like how a psychological thriller should make you feel). And wouldn't you know it, Shyamalan has a mandatory cameo. It is as if Shyamalan follows a certain template for all his movies. Usually, it is like this - The hero has a troubled past --> we get a few glimpses here and there in the form of flashbacks --> he finds himself amidst a scary situation --> Shyamalan appears and disappears randomly --> the hero finds a way out of the situation using his past experiences -->The end? Not really... twist-ending -->The end. That is how I think his scripts go, but I don't care, it is effective here.
The pacing is a bit slow, again, atypical of Shyamalan's films but you can clearly tell, he has put great effort into it. That being said, I was engrossed throughout the entire movie which is usually not the case for me when it comes to a slow movie(The Lady in the Water was a lullaby for me). Like I mentioned earlier, Shyamalan uses tight close-ups (in most of his films) which are extremely effective, especially in this case as it felt a bit claustrophobic and uneasy (just like how a psychological thriller should make you feel). And wouldn't you know it, Shyamalan has a mandatory cameo. It is as if Shyamalan follows a certain template for all his movies. Usually, it is like this - The hero has a troubled past --> we get a few glimpses here and there in the form of flashbacks --> he finds himself amidst a scary situation --> Shyamalan appears and disappears randomly --> the hero finds a way out of the situation using his past experiences -->The end? Not really... twist-ending -->The end. That is how I think his scripts go, but I don't care, it is effective here.
It is funny how one scene in particular reminded me of the Tamil film 'Anniyan'. It is actually very similar. The director is an Indian so maybe...maybe? Then again, who am I to judge? And now onto the twist-ending... the Elephant in the room. I will be realistic here. I honestly don't know if you can appreciate it without having a prior knowledge of something else. If you know that information, at least the place it comes from, you will applaud the ending. I knew the source, I knew that information and for me this was THE best twist-ending EVAR!. It is so hard to explain how awesome it is without spoiling the entire movie. But you will smile your ass off when you see that. The ending lasts only for a few seconds and those last few seconds entirely change the movie for you if you are the right person. I will give you a hint, though I would suggest not knowing it. If you are a follower of Shyamalan's work, trust me it will leave you saying "Ho-ly-Shit!" However, If you do not get the ending, trust me, there is nothing wrong with you. You would appreciate it more if you had known it. You can always Google it AFTER you watch the movie and I have no doubt in my mind that you will appreciate the movie nonetheless. Maybe Shyamalan is back to form. If that is the case, then I am glad Split is the movie that proved it.
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