Yawn

Rating: 5/10 (14 June 2008)

I went into this movie fully expecting it to be like the last two Shyamalan movies I saw Signs and The Village: no so veiled religious symbolism and social commentary, an abrupt anti-climactic ending, and the slight feeling that I was cheated out of a good thriller. I was prepared for all of that...too bad those things weren't what made The Happening so awful.
When they first introduced the idea about the plants I thought it was interesting. However, when they escalated that to scenes with characters trying to outrun the wind, and suck up to a ficus it got just ridiculous.
Although, M. Night Shyamalan movies do tend to be more character driven than plot driven overall so maybe the strength of the characters would hold your interest right? Unfortunately no...most are just plain dull and while putting on terrified expressions seem to have a pulse rate you'd guess was barely above comatose, and the few you're at all tempted to like are quickly killed off.
The two I liked where John Leguizamo as the likable best friend who brilliantly played out the old joke of 'did you know that X number of statistics are just made up on the spot?' And Frank Collison as the eccentric nursery owner who first solves the mystery of The Happening.
The main character played by Mark Wahlberg reminded me of how many people said that Scott Speedman's character in The Strangers was such a wimp...well if they liked Speedman in that movie they'll just LOVE Wahlberg in this one. He plays a high school science teacher who embodies all the worst stereotypes of teachers, and is a complete joke as a scientist! Even more boring was Zooey Deschanel as his wife. Her character seemed pretty under developed, and the parts that you did see weren't ones you liked. I spent the entire time either wanting to slap "Alma", or, being a Bones fan, marveling at how much Zooey really does look like Emily. The two have basically no chemistry together so the old storyline about two characters in a crumbling relationship being brought back together through shared hardship just didn't work that well. The scene where, on what they think is the brink of death, they reminisce about their first date put me to sleep rather than melting my heart, and I didn't feel any enthusiasm for the happy news they got in the aftermath of The Happening.
The creepiest character, by far, was Betty Buckley as the isolated shut-in who lived without any connection to the outside world including electricity. In regards to her this was one time where I agreed with Alma...I'd rather take my chances with airborne toxins than take shelter with "Mrs. Jones"! I couldn't help but wonder, though, whether she was stuck in at the last minute because Shyamalan realized the airborne toxin idea wasn't creating as much suspense as he'd hoped.
The final 'twist' can hardly be called one because I don't think it'll come as a shock to anyone.
As a 4th year biology student, I do agree with the idea that humans are the biggest threat on this planet, but this movie was a poor exploration of that idea and may have even set back acceptance of it! The premise could have been interesting, and the plant idea, while far fetched could probably have been pulled off, but, alas, as a cautionary eco-thriller this one fell flat, and, as a character driven exploration of the the human condition, it feel even farther!