Thoughtful but Improvable

Rating: 7/10 (15 June 2008)

The Happening provides a view of an apocalyptic world and the aftermath of an area after something "happens." M. Night Shyamalan delivers a message to the viewers about the possibilities of this world and how much we still do not know about the potential it has to destroy humanity. The story starts off with mysterious "happenings" that continually occur throughout the Northeast section of the United States. Elliot Moore (casted by Mark Wahlberg) is a science teacher that is faced with these harsh situations where people are dying from unknown causes. He works together with Alma Moore (casted by Zooey Deschanel) to protect themselves and Jess, daughter of fellow teacher Julian (casted by John Leguizamo).
Shyamalan delivers the message in a thoughtful way to continually question ourselves as to what may happen since nature is an unpredictable force. With this harsh reality in view, it may be sensible to question our own actions as to what we are doing to this world and how we may be hurting it. Too many people live each day without worrying about consequences after throwing out emissions from our gas-guzzling cars and pollutants. Shyamalan delves into one of those possible consequences, and that would be nature fighting back to survive.
With an open mind and the ability to go past some of the horribly written lines and awkward acting by Mark Wahlberg, a viewer can experience a possible horror in this world that may become a reality someday in the future. Shyamalan seems to tell us that the unlikely and the seemingly impossible is actually quite possible, but only if we are able to see them happening before our very eyes. However, with this horror film, it is better to question our own actions before horrid consequences may arise.