Shyamalan's best film

Rating: 10/10 (24 February 2020)

After having seen SPLIT (2017) when it first premiered and Glass last year, I started to think about what M. Night Shyamalan's best film really was. I've always believed The Sixth Sense to be overrated. Awards aren't everything. Then there's Unbreakable, which I actually hadn't got around to seeing until after I watched Split (and anyone who's seen the ending knows why) and ignoring the fact that I saw Split first, I would definitely say that Unbreakable is Shyamalan's best film UNTIL Split. Everything in between is a mixed bag from the super slow Signs to the mildly entertaining The Visit. Then Glass comes out and while I really liked it and thought it had some great moments and a well-written story, it didn't quite hit the spot for me. So I re-watched and analyzed Split and concluded that this film is indeed the BEST of the famous director's works.
Set in Philly (where else?), Split tells the story of the disturbed Dennis, a man afflicted multiple personalities, 23 in fact, only some of which are essayed in this film. James McAvoy is utterly brilliant as the man of many layers. The way that he shuffles in and out of the various personas is jaw-dropping. When the movie came out, there was no doubt in my mind that McAvoy deserved Oscar consideration, which sadly he didn't get I think in large part of when the film premiered, too early in the year and the Academy had memory loss come voting time.
In the opening scene, Dennis kidnaps 3 teenage girls in a mall parking lot where they had just celebrated one of the girl's birthday party. The 3 girls are birthday girl Claire and her best friend Marcia (excellently played by Haley Lu Richardson and Jessica Sula) and loner girl Casey (superbly performed by Anya Taylor-Joy, more on her later), who Claire only invited to her party out of pity as Casey is extremely introverted and rebellious with no friends. But it's Casey's very street smarts and personal experiences that helps the trio navigate through their predicament as the other 2 girls are more sheltered and clueless as to what to do.
During their capture, they begin to learn of Dennis' various personalities, which include a crafty British woman named Patricia as well as a 9-year old boy named Hedwig. While Dennis has OCD and needs everything neat and clean, Patricia is the mastermind of the personalities and acts as a kind of gatekeeper, and Hedwig is the unfiltered observer who gleefully tells the girls what Dennis is capable of.Again, McAvoy manages to shift back and forth among these fascinating characters without ever devolving into silliness. While there are moments of levity and humor, of course it's all rather sad and shocking.
Along the way, we find out that Dennis is actually being treated by a psychiatrist Dr. Karen Fletcher (wonderfully played by screen veteran Betty Buckley). Dr. Fletcher specializes in patients with DID and as the film progresses, tries to break through Dennis' walls and unwittingly begins to unravel his machinations. Meanwhile the female trio bang their heads together to escape Dennis' lair. Split is virtually all psychological drama as it is dialogue-heavy and is as much about tapping into what makes these characters tick as it about moving the plot forward to see if the girls can escape and Dennis will be apprehended.
In addition to McAvoy, I honestly believe that both Buckley and especially Taylor-Joy deserved Oscar love. As blown away as I was by McAvoy's work, I was equally enamored by Taylor-Joy's contribution to this piece. As iconic as McAvoy's characters are, I think Casey is just as memorable and the damaged, internal, survivor Casey is the true protagonist of this masterwork, while McAvoy's characters all function as pretty much villains that need to be defeated.
Despite the film's 2-hour length, Shyamalan fashions a very tight film with no wasted moments or unnecessary scenes. I've even seen some of the deleted scenes and think they would have fit well into the film. Some times, you can never have too much of a good thing and Split is more than good. Now that the decade has come to a close, I can honestly say it's in my Top 5 films of the 2010s. Shyamalan is officially back!