Sybil Unrest

Rating: 7/10 (17 February 2017)

(RATING: ☆☆☆½ out of 5)
GRADE: B-
THIS FILM IS RECOMMENDED
IN BRIEF: James McAvoy's performance(s) is (are) the real reason to see this flawed thriller.
SYNOPSIS: Three teenagers are kidnapped and held captive by a deranged loner.
Dissociate Identity Disorder, a form of mental illness in which one has multiple personalities, is the inspiration for M. Night Shyamalan's latest psychological thriller, Split. While the premise for his film is always intriguing, the execution is as mix-up as his central character(s). One begins to wonder if the talented director/writer will ever find his true visionary self as well, but he is on his way to self discovery with this outing.
Three teenagers (Anya Taylor-Joy, Haley Lu Richardson, and Jessica Sula) are abducted by a man who suffers from multiple split personalities, 23 and counting. James McAvoy plays Kevin aka Dennis / Patricia / Barry / Hedwig and other various individuals that possess this man at a moment's notice. While this may be taking diversity to extremes, the film lays the groundwork for a taut thriller, especially with the director's use of atmospheric visuals. He creates tension very well. If only his screenplay would have avoided stock characters and predictable outcomes.
After setting up an effectively creepy and overused story-line, Mr. Shyamalan relies too heavily on his characters' dumb reactions to situations that could have been easily (and logically) avoided during parts of the cat-and-mouse games. His screenplay has gaping leaps of logic and one too many plot contrivances that make little sense except to advance the action and make the film more suspenseful. Especially odd is the obsessive behavior of Kevin's psychiatrist, Dr. Fletcher (Betty Buckley), but you know where that is heading from their first session. There is a flashback story that fills in some exposition to one of the characters, but more development on that aspect was needed. Of course, there is also his trademark twist ending, and it worked well enough, just not very surprising or exciting.
But it is Mr. McAvoy who impresses with his acting choices and he is terrific. With a wide range of quirks and subtlety, he play Kevin with the widest of strokes. Displaying extreme mood swings from childlike behavior or sudden violent tendencies, the actor brings the proper degree of menace and vulnerability in his many transitions. Ms. Taylor-Joy gives strong support as his sharp-witted adversary and Ms. Buckley adds greater depth to a standard rote role.
Split is an entertaining psychological thriller that uses mental illness as a plot device for cheap thrills. And though Mr. Shyamalan remains in full control, except for a script that could have used a rewrite or two, it is his lead actor who rescues his film from its run-of-the-mill mediocre origins.