Unbreakable

Following huge box-office hits is always a nearly impossible task. With The Sixth Sense, Shyamalan constructed a film of subtle complexity, one that because of the jarring finale commanded a second viewing. Unbreakable is similar to the mammoth hit in its deliberate pacing, but is a much more advanced film in terms of its construction.

The premise is an intriguing one: David Dunn is seemingly unable to be hurt. He doesn't get sick or feel the effects of the flu or of chickenpox. He seems to be unbreakable. Elijah Price, on the other hand, has been nicknamed Mr. Glass. His bones are brittle and he constantly gets sick. His bones shatter when he falls down the stairs, where David would escape unscathed. Is there a correlation between the two?

The film, unexpectedly, takes the comic book route. It opens with a text introduction to the habits of the average comic book lover. The way in which the film introduces the correlation between the two main characters is startlingly original and totally unexpected. Comic books are a form of history, contends Elijah, and is a link to our past that few can recognize. The superheroes and supervillians which comic book lovers have grown up with are merely reflections of our society, and the subtext in each issue tells us about unknown phenomena in our society, that people don't recognize the strange gifts that have been given to them.

Shyamalan's direction is a thing of beauty. He's shot the film with - dare I say it - Kubrick-esque patience and innovation. The camera movement is steady and hypnotic, and the lighting (especially during the dramatic climactic house scene) is nothing less than extraordinairy. Some of the film is shot in black and white, except a lone character which is brightly colored (ala Schindler's List). Golden movie moments like these flashbacks, and where Dunn slowly slides the newspaper across the table to his amazed son, are abound in this film.

Shyamalan has also got great performances out of his cast. Bruce Willis, who was so calm and restrained in The Sixth Sense, is even better in this. Samuel L. Jackson is equally great as the mysterious, questioning Elijah Price. David Dunn's son, Joseph, is played to the hilt by Spencer Treat Clark, a Haley Joel Osment look-alike. Robin Wright Penn is good, but underused, as Dunn's wife.

Unbreakable will not do The Sixth Sense size business. Those who expect another Sense might be disappointed. While I think that this is his better film, it's quite different in its emphasis and qualities. I hope that the lesser box-office grosses for this will not decide for Shyamalan what his next film should be. And, while both twists at the end work, I hope that he realizes that you don't need a turn-your-head-around change at the very end to make a good, successful film. The important thing, however, is for our director to not stop tweaking his style. He's gone a long ways since his megahit, that much is evident, but there is so many different angles he could take on bringing a script of his to the surface. If he continues to evolve, Shyamalan could be a gift from heaven for Hollywood.

Unbreakable is a complex comic book tale with a unique spin. It's an improvement over The Sixth Sense but I suspect that most will feel it's a step backward. With it's sharp script and mesmerizing direction, Unbreakable qualifies as one of the best films of the year. It's surely an effort from a young, up-and-coming director that we will all watch closely for years to come. See this film, and don't spoil the ending for the rest.

On a scale of 1 to 10 supermen: 8

[Spoilers! - Note to those who have seen the film (highlight to read): Did the concluding text segments seem out of place to you too? Bruce Willis, in a recent Yahoo! chat said that Unbreakable is the first part of a planned trilogy of films. Could these successive films shed light on to why Shyamalan felt the need to include those concluding remarks? They were a huge blemish on an otherwise remarkable film.]