More Crap from M.

Rating: Null/10 (24 July 2004)

With my viewing tonight of "Unbreakable," I have now been unfortunately forced by well-meaning people to see all of his films.
Once again, Mr. M proves that he has an amazing ability to take an interesting premise and turn it into a horribly derivative farce of movie making. I'm constantly shocked by people comparing Shyamalan to Hitchcock and Kurosawa -- I believe these directors would be turning in their graves if they knew they were being compared with this inarticulate pop schlock Meister.
A much more accurate comparison would be Spielberg -- another director who pumps out discount emotive crap that continues to bring in big box office scores. But tonight, I've realized I have a new appreciation for Spielberg -- at least he knows how to make a shallow, single-themed storyline a little bit more interesting.
Honestly, I'm completely perplexed at how the movie-going public continues to support M. Night Shyamalan's work. His movies have all the cheese of a Spielberg movie with none of the cheap thrills moviegoers seem to love.
Hmm, maybe the fans of this director think they're having some kind of "cultural art experience" -- like the way my mom says she's going to see "theatre" when she goes to Broadway musicals.
If you spend your life watching WB sitcoms, going to Starbuck's to read a Grisham novel, and shopping at The Gap, you will love this movie. If you have the slightest bit of discriminating taste ... well you've probably already figured out that M. Night Shyamalan is a hack best avoided.