Unbreakable

Meet M. Night Shyamalan, aged 30, hails from Philadelphia. Last year, he showed remarkable promise as a filmmaker with an unassuming little movie called The Sixth Sense. Its phenomenal success can be attributed to a number of factors, including an excellent screenplay, clever direction, and top-notch acting, but its strongest point was an ending so powerful that it would have made the late, great Rod Serling proud.

Now picture, if you will, a man who has to follow up on that promise, or he will forever be known as a one trick pony who made the film with the kid who saw dead people. Fortunately, Unbreakable, while far from being perfect, is a riveting, suspenseful, and wholly original film that marks a big step forward for the confident young director, and as a result, it will catapult him into the brightest corner of...The Hollywood Zone!

If you look up the words "lucky man" in the dictionary, you'll find a picture of David Dunn (Bruce Willis). After his train derails and kills everyone on board, David literally walks away from the wreckage without a mark on his body. Just when he shrugs off the incident and settles back into his life as a meek University of Pennsylvania security guard, he receives an anonymous note from Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), a comic book art dealer who suffers from a degenerative bone disease. He's convinced that David has special powers--including a sixth sense--and he tries to help him understand the nature of his gifts. They form an unusual bond, and David learns that with great power comes great responsibility--but it also comes at a price.

Comparisons are bound to be made between Unbreakable and The Sixth Sense, and for good reason. Both films star Bruce Willis and take place in Philadelphia. Both films have a supernatural quality, and yes, both films have an ending so powerful that it'll knock you off your seat. But the real question is this--is Unbreakable a better movie? The answer is, it's just different. It definitely requires a bigger leap of faith than The Sixth Sense did, but one thing's for sure--there's nothing else like it, and that alone makes it an incredible moviegoing experience.

Oddly enough, Unbreakable has a lot in common with, of all things, The Legend of Bagger Vance. Both films feature main characters who have given up on their true potential. Only with the help of mysterious strangers--both of whom are played by African-Americans--are they able to ponder the true meaning of their existence. But that's where it ends. Where Bagger Vance is beautifully shot with an almost dreamlike quality, the tone of the dark and ominous Unbreakable couldn't be any more different.

From a directorial standpoint, Shyamalan tries to outdo himself by using more innovative camera techniques, and for the most part, he succeeds. But there are times when he walks the fine line between brilliance and indulgence, as some scenes go on far too long, while others are laboriously contrived. Also, the film could have used an injection of humor. During the scenes where Samuel L. Jackson goes on about comic book heroes and villains, his claims are so outrageous that it's hard to take him seriously.

Shyamalan is obviously taking his cues from the Master of Suspense himself--Alfred Hitchcock. He layers each scene with so much intensity and detail that, like The Sixth Sense, it will take repeated viewings to fully appreciate the film's overall beauty. Also, he doesn't rush to reveal things early on, and he lets the story unfold like a painting that can best be appreciated in its finished form. This may test the patience of today's movie-going audience, and as a result, initial reactions are bound to be mixed. (It is also worth noting that, like Hitchcock, Shyamalan makes brief appearances in his films.)

Bruce Willis once again proves his acting chops with a performance that is heartbreaking, liberating, and, ultimately, devastating. He knows that he has a gift, but unlike Jeff Bridges' plane crash survivor in 1993's Fearless, he hides from it and takes the rest of his family down with him. Jackson plays one of the creepiest roles of his career as the comic art preserver who takes one too many lessons from the pop-art form, and the power of his performance instantly takes its hold. Finally, the film may not feature the incredible acting talents of Haley Joel Osment, but it comes close enough with Spencer Treat Clark (a dead-ringer for Osment), who gives strong emotional support to Willis' conflict.

Midway through Unbreakable, Jackson tells Robin Wright Penn (who plays Willis' wife with dramatic conviction) to keep an open mind. That pretty much sums up the entire film. Shyamalan may not cover all his bases like he did with The Sixth Sense, but like fine art, Unbreakable needs to be observed, dissected, and absorbed to be fully appreciated. Take it all in. Don't rush to judgment. Peel back its layered detail. Give yourself over to the film, and by the time the ball comes back to you, it'll knock you off your feet and right back into...The Hollywood Zone!