M. Night Shyamalan strikes back for a solidly crafted, spine-chilling experience

Rating: 8/10 (30 January 2017)

After his major success with the 1999 psychological horror-thriller 'The Sixth Sense', M. Night Shyamalan, an expert of suspense and supernatural twists, appeared to have a promising career ahead of him. Following his triumph with 'Unbreakable' and 'Signs', Shyamalan sorely met a downward trajectory in his career with a long string of cinematic duds that failed to demonstrate the firm potential of his filmmaking talent. After the vast disappointment of 2013's 'After Earth', movie fans everywhere grew pessimistic about his career ever resurfacing. His career finally saw a small shade of heavenly light when he directed the 2015 found-footage thriller 'The Visit' which marked a moderate comeback. This psychological thriller however, shows Shyamalan returning to the supernatural genre in his most valuable form with psychological twists and mind-bending thrills. Echoing his notable works, this film strolls audiences through a dark, mysterious vehicle where expectations are challenged and minds of viewers are effectively played with. This film follows three teenage girls: best friends Claire (played by Haley Ru Richardson) and Marcia (played by Jessica Sula), and social awkward outsider Casey (played by Anya Taylor-Joy) who are abducted and trapped inside a basement cellar by the hands of a psychopath (played by James McAvoy). He isn't no ordinary psychopath however, he is a man who suffers from dissociative identity disorder (meaning he carries 23 different personalities). The girls must outsmart him in attempt to escape before suffering by the hands his 24th and his most vicious personality yet -- The Beast.
M. Night Shyamalan is veteran for crafting smart, spine-tingling vehicles that challenge the minds of viewers and spear them with twist endings that that are nearly impossible to see on the horizon. That is until his long string of cinematic debacles began trailing on his career. Here, Shyamalan has made a triumphant return and mingled in a superbly crafted plot with a solid assortment of spellbinding thrills and engaging cinematography that echoes Mike Gioulakis's work in 'It Follows'. The story cuts back and worth between James McAvoy's chilling interaction with the girls, and his relationship with his therapist (played by Betty Buckley) who plays a vital role throughout the story. The former however, easily marks the story's high points. The cutthroat atmosphere is enticingly generated by a chilling performance by James McAvoy who drastically alternates between a long series of multiple personalities with pinches of both dark humor and cynicism, and the battle of the minds between his character and the three teen girls rolls with plenty of startling twists. As part his trademark style, Shyamalan is a director in favor of not repetitive jump scares or drenching the atmosphere in relentless blood and gore, but instead using a thoughtful narrative to toy with the minds of viewers. And his methods greatly pay from the start to the climatic final act when the suspense and thrills goes on full throttle, to an ending that will raise some eyebrows. If this film has any blemishes, it may be the underdevelopment of the female characters portrayed by Haley Ru Richardson and Jessica Sula as opposed to Anya Taylor-Joy's character is the only one of the trio assembled in a three-dimensional state. And there are some occasional instances of dialogue that comes off rather cheesy. Overall, M. Night Shyalaman crafts for a superb experience where these flaws can be effortlessly overlooked.
Split is provocative, spine-chilling psychological thrill piece that not only scores for an engrossing experience, but also marks a triumphant return for director M. Night Shyamalan in his career. In a large pile of January-released duds, this film truly stands out among them. Needless to say, it proves that 2015's 'The Visit' wasn't a just a fluke.