What's "Happening" Now?

If you have seen the adverts for The Happening, you know that this is M. Night Shyamalan's first R rated picture. This means that this Hitchcock-esq director will have a broader subject matter to delve into. There can be nudity, curse words, and blood galore. This should tickle any horror fan. I was super excited when I saw that he was given the chance to expand! Not only could this movie have all the bloody scares any horror buff could want, it also had some very promising actors. Needless to say I went into the movie expecting a thrill ride to rival any of his previous works. What I got, in my opinion, was something akin to a kiddie ride instead of a roller coaster.

Starring Mark Whalberg, Zooey Deschanel, and John Leguizamo, I went into this with promise. It was hard to see Mark Whalberg as a science teacher. I don't know why. He just didn't seem to fit. It was like he was trying too hard. The same with Leguizamo as the math teacher. It just seemed forced. They didn't give bad performances just unbelievable. Zooey Descanel was better but still a little stiff. The plot was interesting, but it felt like a bunch of environmental propaganda with some really cool suicides thrown in.

It was not really a slow film. It started off grabbing me, but as it went through all the odd happenings I found myself drifting, only perking up when the suicides would happen. "Hmmm do we have milk in the house? Do I have any clean towels? I really like cheese. Oh look! A guy in a lion cage!" I wish the film would have had a deeper explanation and maybe some more suicides. I will give them that. The deaths were fantastic! I enjoyed every one of them. Quite creepy. However according to Will, when the Private used the term "Cheese and Crackers!" that made it epic. I tend to agree that the term "Cheese and Crackers" is the proverbial "shit" I don't think it could save the movie.

All in all The Happening isn't a bad movie. It isn't a good one. It was a one time watcher. If You are in the mood for an M. Night movie I would suggest Unbreakable or The Sixth Sense over The Happening.

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