Split - Review: Paint by Numbers

Rating: 5/10 (21 January 2017)

M. Night Shyamalan is a director trying to find his way back into the consciousness of the movie-going audience.
Split which is written and directed by Shyamalan seems like a movie that is trying to win you over without doing very much.
The actors in this movie are great. Anya Taylor-Joy, Jessica Sula, and Haley Lu Richardson are all exceptional actors who delivered fine performances here.
James McAvoy is the star of this show and his performance is the make or break of this movie's soul. How can an actor handle and portray so many characters simultaneously? Every character that McAvoy portrays here is brilliant. I can say that McAvoy pretty much steals the entire show with his performances.
Split likes to play on situations. What would you do if someone attacked you? The movie illustrates that you have no idea what you would do if a life or death situation arose. I found myself yelling at the screen during certain moments because of the idiotic decisions I thought the three main characters were making. However, no matter how idiotic I thought their decisions were, I know that everybody's different, and nobody would handle every situation the exact same way.
Split plays out like a puzzle builder; You constantly get small pieces of the puzzle as the movie progresses, but you don't get a clear image as to what you're looking at yet. The movie feels obligatory once all of the pieces are in place.
The music and the directing here is great.
Overall, I enjoyed this movie for the most part, but it felt obligatory once everything was said and done. I know what this movie ties into and I won't spoil it, but the final scene truly establishes the rest of the movie. However, that little piece of information doesn't excuse this movie's obligatory nature. I'm stuck in the middle with M. Night Shyamalan's Split and I truly believe that he can do better than this.
Final Grade: C