The Resurgence of the Twist Master
The year is 1999 and cinemagoers everywhere are repeating the line “I see dead people” with a shocked glee. The man who wrote this now iconic line is M. Night Shyamalan. And the film is, of course, The Sixth Sense. This film was a game changer for modern cinema, calling back to suspense pictures from the classic Hollywood (notably Hitchcock, an idol of Shyamalan’s).
The Sixth Sense was number 1 in the US Box Office for 5 weeks and grossed over $26.6 million in its opening weekend alone. It had everyone talking, and for good reason – the twist was genius. The film saw Bruce Willis proving he still had what it takes as a serious actor, far from John McClane.
In the wake of its success, Shyamalan’s early films became instant hits; through word of mouth of ‘amazing twists’ and spine-tingling suspense. Next came Unbreakable (2000), a nuanced, subtle ‘comic book’ film with two outstanding performances from Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson. The film soon grew a devout following and strong reception. The same goes for Signs (2002) starring Mel Gibson and Joaquin Phoenix as farming brothers who soon realise they are on the cusp of being in the dead centre of an alien invasion. Like all of M. Night’s films before it, the film is intense, well acted and highly entertaining.
2004 saw the opening of The Village, starring Bryce Dallas Howard in her debut role and Joaquin Phoenix. The film focused on a medieval town plagued by mysterious monsters creeping in the woods, and elders who forbid everyone else in the colony from leaving their safe haven. The Village utterly polarised audiences. Most consider it to be a let down with poor gimmicks and ludicrous plot devices. For Shyamalan, it was the beginning of his career plummet, and many commentators began to suggest that he had simply peaked too soon.
The second half of the noughties was a far more turbulent time for M. Night. The material he was putting out was just not as accessible for most audiences, and lacked clear, strong narratives. First came Lady in the Water (2006), again starring Bryce Dallas Howard and Paul Giamatti. Billed as a ‘comedy fantasy’ it was M. Night’s lowest opening to date, and due to poor reviews its second week box office diminished even further. By this point, even the casual viewer knew that the tag ‘from the director of The Sixth Sense’ did not guarantee a reputable hit anymore.
Unfortunately, one misstep led to another. The Last Airbender (2010) was baffling and After Earth (2013) was even more questionable. A bizarre sci-fi flick, After Earth starred Will Smith and son Jayden (and a substantial amount of green screen) who leave their new home planet and crash land back on Earth, with ‘danger at every corner’. The film was panned for poor acting, plot and pacing, even a major star like Will Smith couldn't save a sinking ship. Shyamalan retreated. For a while it wasn’t clear if he’d ever come back with another film. Had the backlash become too much? To the world he seemed done for. It seemed that his first major picture would always be his greatest.
But in 2015, M. Night burst back onto our screens with The Visit. The film had a minuscule budget of $5 million but it raked in a global total of $98 million. Not bad for a ‘has been’ who shot the film in 30 days in an old house in Pennsylvania. It felt more like an indie horror picture, so far removed from the huge, glossy blockbusters he had begun to delve into – and all the better for it. It was the shot of adrenaline Shyamalan’s ailing career (and reputation) needed. The Visit is a slow, suspenseful outing, full of enough humour, chills and shocks that it took us back to the film maker we knew and loved in the early noughties.
The highly ambitious Split (2016) starred James McAvoy as Kevin Crumb – a man with 23 different personalities, which included a 9 year old boy named Hedwig, a classy woman named Patricia and OCD fueled Dennis. Kevin kidnaps 3 girls, including Anya Taylor-Joy’s Cacey, hiding them in his makeshift underground home. The girls have to deal with each persona carefully, and try to figure a way out before the ‘beast’ arrives. Split will most definitely make your skin crawl – M. Night nails the sense of dread from the opening scene and it does not let up at any point. It’s perhaps McAvoy’s most compelling and unsettling role put to screen. He plays 9 distinct parts (the movie only shows these factions of his mind) of this man’s personality and his range is jaw dropping. As is the ‘twist’ ending of Split, for that matter…
Be warned – spoilers ahead - Split links back to the M. Night classic Unbreakable. In the final scene of Split David Dunn (Bruce Willis’ character in Unbreakable) is seen at a diner watching the news of Kevin’s antics break out. It was a risky move. Creating this film was a hard gamble, but it has paid off quite literally. Earning a whopping $275m global box office, it is now the biggest horror film since The Conjuring (2013). On a budget of a mere $9 million.
At the end of last month, riding on the huge success of Split, Shyamalan announced that his next film will be a sequel to Split and Unbreakable. Due for a 2019 release, he promises that it will combine the stories of David and Kevin where both films will ‘collide’.
The twist maestro has made his own career into a huge twist – he was so near to the brink of obscurity, that this new, revived director is shocking, and most importantly awe-inspiring. I’m sure M. would say that hindsight is a beautiful thing, but those (dramatic) missteps have brought us to where we are now, and if this means a closing chapter to the Unbreakable story, count me in!
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