Don't go see "Unbreakable" — the latest project from writer and director M. Night Shyamalan — if you are hoping for another movie like "The Sixth Sense," his smash success from the summer of 1999. Shyamalan has been compared in film circles to an early Steven Spielberg or Alfred Hitchcock, and this is only the fourth project for the 30-year-old filmmaker.
But "Unbreakable" is no "Sixth Sense."
"Unbreakable" reunites Shyamalan with "Sixth Sense" star Bruce Willis, who plays David Dunn — a character even more mild-mannered than Willis' Malcolm Crowe in "The Sixth Sense." David is a security guard whose life changes after he becomes the sole survivor of a gruesome train wreck outside Philadelphia. The accident — caused by "some kind of malfunction" — completely destroys the passenger cars, but David emerges without so much as a scratch. Is he unbreakable?
Everyone writes off the event as a freak coincidence, except for Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), an off-beat comic book afficionado and art dealer who sees life metaphors in comic book lore. Elijah has a rare genetic disorder that makes his bones very weak and easily breakable. He has been in and out of hospitals his whole life, having broken upwards of 50 bones.
When Elijah hears of David's survival he approaches him with a wild theory. Elijah has lived his life in the hope that he would one day find his opposite "on the other end of the spectrum," someone who, quite literally, has super powers. He is convinced that David is the real-life equivalent of a comic book hero.
Fairly early on, the film's agonizingly slow pace — its principal weakness — gets it into trouble. The story gets so bogged down at times that I wished Shyamalan had made a short film rather than a feature. At one point, for example, Willis' character focuses on the question of whether he has ever been sick. He asks his boss, his wife and himself repeatedly, as if he'd never considered the question before.
I find it very hard to believe that someone could go through 40 years of life and not know this basic piece of information. Everyone remembers being sick, and if you were never sick, you would surely remember that too. Yet the film spends scene after scene on the question.
The success of "The Sixth Sense" earned Shyamalan more creative freedom in making "Unbreakable." He attempts some very interesting angles and camera moves, and also chooses to shoot several scenes as reflections — in a mirror or TV screen, for example. For the most part I found these to be a distraction, neither lending to the mood of the piece nor being consistent with the film's themes. Some critics laud the director for his daring, but sometimes boldness is just foolishness in disguise.
The initial scene, between Willis and a female passenger with whom he flirts, is shot from the perspective of a girl sitting in the row in front of them peering back between the seats — a mildly interesting idea, but an eavesdropper doesn't sway back and forth mechanically between her subjects, as Shyamalan's camera does.
A lot of his moves have a sort of "Oh wow, look at me!" quality, and are more cheap visual gags than works of genius. Reflection is a theme in the film, as characters try to understand their true essences, but the use — or rather overuse — of reflective surfaces detracts from the mood.
Willis once again gives an effectively subdued performance as David, akin to his "Sixth Sense" character portrayal. His role in "Unbreakable" is less interesting, however, a fact that stems largely from the mediocre dialogue and awkward pacing of the story.
Robin Wright Penn is quite good as Audrey, David's somewhat estranged wife of 12 years. She is the most believable character in the film, and I would like to have seen her play a larger role in the story.
Instead, the couple's son (Spencer Treat Clark) takes a front seat, first as the only one to believe Elijah's superhero theory, and then going to great — and at times implausible — lengths to prove it. Clark is fine when the writing is good, but it's harder to get a child actor to pull off weak dialogue than it is a seasoned veteran.
And Jackson's character, Elijah, takes on an almost cartoonish quality. He frequently remarks how his childhood playmates called him "Mr. Glass" because of his propensity to break bones, and the metaphor is carried through the film, from his glass cane to the interior design of his comic-art gallery. His character is exaggerated, but this pays off as the story progresses.
There are some interesting twists and turns in "Unbreakable," including a major development at the end reminiscent of "Sixth Sense." The twist in "Unbreakable," though, is less in keeping with the rest of the film.
Most of the time, "Unbreakable" suffers from not knowing what kind of film it really is. The story is not cohesive, the drama is largely absent and suspenseful moments are few and far between. In the film's favor are Willis, some visually interesting sequences, occasional laughs and a shocking, if bizarre, ending. The pace quickens as the film goes on, but I was amazed to discover that the whole thing is a scant one hour and 40 minutes. It feels much longer.
It will be interesting to see if the sequel to "Unbreakable," which is supposedly in the works, will be able to address some of the first film's shortcomings. Personally, I would prefer to see Shyamalan move on.
Scenes from "Unbreakable." Left: Bruce Willis. Right, from top: Samuel L. Jackson; Willis (l.) and Jackson; Robin Wright Penn (r.) and Willis.
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