Good Horror, Not The Greatest Shyamalan(but NOT that bad)

Rating: 7/10 (16 June 2008)

M. Night Shyamalan, tries to make a summer horror movie, with no pretensions. The problem lies that pretensions are what make some artist's good, it's their ambition(insane, and annoying at times though it may be), that makes them so vital. "Lady In ...(read more)The Water" was ridiculous but it was interesting, it's arguable, it has ideas greater than itself. "The Happening" is an example of what you see is what you get. There is no twist here, just survival and some thin guess work for a plot, some very intense sequences, and an ending which has some subtle hints at environmental crisis and the woes of global self-destruction.
People continuously go see Nights movies expecting "revelations", when at best he's made some clever twists and subversion's of standard speculative fiction conventions; ghosts, superheros, aliens, fairy tales, utopias and monster myths, etc. He stands out as much as he does because he makes interesting genre films in places other's wont tread, or tread poorly. At a time when all movies are either franchise attempts or remakes or both, it's nice to see someone(anyone), at least try and think of something new.
It just feels like people expect Night to be Hitchcock, when really he's somewhere between him and Larry Cohen.
So what's left is a good pop corn horror film, with some original images, good music, a few awkward bits in the dialog, but over all decent writing with some light comedic touches(very needed), for effect. I think as a director overall he's grown, while as a story teller, he may be running on steam. Even though it's not as thought provoking as his other films, it's got all the suspense and dramatic tension, audiences have been waiting for since "Signs". So a little disappointing, but overall still worth checking out.
(Spoiler Following): There's a lot places the plot could have actually gone, there are theories that the evolution of flowers helped wipe out the dinosaurs, which I was just sure this movie would mention, but it Dian't...or maybe something more with communication between human and plants(hinted, joked at, but never done). The movie makes it clear that "man" is the problem, like the ending of "Planet Of The Apes", one can imagine M. Night Shyamalan somewhere on a beach banging his fists into the sand shouting "You blew it up you maniacs" at the statue of Liberty, however in 2008, pointing out that man is self destructive an enemy of the environment of the planet, is like shooting fish in a barrel. Every movie from Godzilla to Frankenstien tries to point out how were messing up the natural balance, only Night doesn't seem to see any possible end in sight, just the beginnings of crests on a terrible wave of future problems(which is fair, and if nothing else honest), and so it seems the optimist of "Lady In The Water" and "Signs" where we had hope and each other to believe in, has finally given in to modern pessimism (remember all those cars driving away from the dinner)...were all f*&ked, we are a disease...but at least we got movies.