Rating: Summary: Subtle Cinematic Superpower film often misunderstood Review: I am not going to explain Unbreakable. It is a movie that is best enjoyed when you know as little as possible going in. M Night Shayamalan's latest tells the story about a humble ordinary man who is surrounded by temptation and uncertainty about life's choices.This is movie that exercises the power of identity and the cosmic exchange that can occur in our most domestic duties. I think the audience is lost on the fact at how this movie isn't about cookie-cutter people; they are real people who are suffering from daily life and struggling with finding meaning. Ultamitely, the story adds a new chapter between good and evil and the mythology of modern heros. This is Bruce Willis' best film and he is fantastic in it. Samuel Jackson gets material he deserves. And all technical aspects are top notch(DTS sound and cinematography). This is M. Night's best film until Signs with Mel Gibson.
Rating: Summary: Hard to watch....... Review: This visually stunning follow-up to M. Night's "The Sixth Sense" was very highly anticipated by me and many others who found his first movie breathtaking. To say the least, I was extremely dissapointed. I found the plot twists silly and badly timed. The scene involving Bruce Willis' son pointing a gun at him made me laugh out loud. (His son was so convinced that his father was a superhero, he was going to shoot him to prove it.) Writing like that just makes my stomach turn. I think M. Night made a movie that had a deep personal interest to him, but a gut wrenching car wreck ensued on the screen. Pass on this one.
Rating: Summary: Unbearable more like it Review: The only reason I gave this movie 2 stars is because of the great Samuel L Jackson. I'm probably the only person that found myself asking why was this made? Mr. Glass was the only thing keeping me in the theatre, and I work there!!! I have no intention on buying this DVD. I'm mainly writing this review to see if anyone shares my opinion about this movie. Leave the comic book scene to Kevin Smith.
Rating: Summary: dumb. Review: It should be a given that any movie by a man who goes by "M. Night Shyamalan" (complete with mysterious first initial and unnecessary, spooky-sounding middle name) is going to be heavy-handed pretentious drivel. Shyamalan comes from the post-Kubrick, hyper-self-conscious style of film direction: that is to say, every single shot of the movie will draw undue attention to itself (so that you notice how deep and clever it is) and every single utterance of dialogue will be buffered on either side by ten seconds (so that you notice how deep and clever it is.) The movie starts poorly, with a goofy statistics citation that is supposed to be a thought-provoking precursor to what's to come, by merely confirming what most of us have known for some time: that comic book collectors are incredible dorks. This opening gimmick identifies one of many major problems with the film: it is embarrassingly overburdened with what it wants to express. The story would've stood up considerably better if the tedious preoccupation with comic-books had been hacked out. It is obvious enough that the mythology of the super-hero is what's being explored in this movie, the point didn't need to be dwelled on. But ignorant or dismissive of this, Shyamalan batters us over the head with his theme again, and again, and again, usually in the form of cringe-worthy monologues by the astoundingly limited Samuel Jackson. (As usual, every word Jackson speaks is imbibed with a sermon-like intensity, which borders on the ridiculous in everything since Pulp Fiction; and comes off especially poorly here, given that his sermons typically include painful gems like: "Water; it's like your kryptonite.") Yes, Sam. Yes, Shyamalan. I get it. Put the shovel down. The characters who populate this film are astonishingly uninteresting. Bruce Willis plays a mopey, dim-witted man who fails to realize that he has never been sick or injured in his entire life, until Jackson comes along and points it out to him, following a terrible train wreck that Willis has mysteriously survived. Burdened by the suspicion that he is invincible and has minor super-powers, David (Willis), well ... continues to mope around. Why? No, really, get this: because he is "sad." He is sad, in essence, because he's (A) been too stupid to notice that he's invincible and gifted with super-powers, and (B) been too apathetic to make meaningful or interesting use of them in any case, which leads to the result that (C) he hasn't assumed his destined role in life. No; Willis is too busy making his dissolving marriage as bleak and miserable as humanly possible with his inexplicably overwrought unresponsiveness and vacuous self-absorption, to worry about super-powers. This might have been a little more credible, or tolerable, if the relationship was actually interesting, or evoked sympathy of some kind. But it doesn't. David is a humorless bore who early on, I suspected of mild mental retardation, and his wife (Penn) is equally devoid of personality. Their child is a nerve-grating Osment-wannabe who is utterly unnecessary to the movie, and in fact, rather obtrusive throughout. Several of the most laughably awkward and ineffectual scenes revolve around him. ("No shooting friends, Joseph," indeed.) The father/son relationship that is - presumably - supposed to be one of the film's more "touching" elements, simply goes to show how miraculously ignorant Shyamalan is of how the dynamics of human relationships actually function. So what does that leave us? Oh, yeah. "Mr. Glass." Ironically, I actually think Mr. Glass housed some of the film's greatest potential; his fragile condition is, theoretically, a nice contrast to David's invincibility, and his rough fall down the stairs was perhaps the only point in the film when I actually sympathized and felt (mildly) involved with what was happening onscreen. Unfortunately, Mr. Glass isn't allowed to be a real character; he is - get this - a comic-book fanatic and collector, who spends, incidentally, 90% of his script-time spelling out Shyamalan's ideas for us, displaying aptly how seriously Shyamalan himself takes them, and how deeply he wants us to be awe-struck by them. The "surprise ending" gimmick, of which Mr. Glass plays a large part and of which Shyamalan is obviously much too fond, has exceptionally little resonance or impact since we all realize on some level that Mr. Glass has just been Shyamalan's thesis-(...) for the last two hours, instead of a well-developed character in his own right whose history or motivations are of interest to us. Additionally, it simply doesn't make a great deal of sense, or ring true. Unbreakable is a very stylistic movie and there were occasional intimations of the potential for something good, something involving, entertaining, and interesting. But only intimations. As far as the DVD goes, it's nicely packaged, with an additional disc of relatively boring features. Some of the comic creators who comment in the comic-book documentary are truly creepy. The multi-angle feature is masturbatory and boring, and the commentary from the actors and director adds little to the movie, since everything the movie wanted to suggest is so painfully obvious to begin with. It does draw extra attention to his various film school tricks, but under the circumstances they're just dressing without a salad. There is also a silly little movie Shyamalan made with his friends in highschool, which was amusing. Perhaps the best feature is the deleted scenes, a few of which were actually good scenes that the film would've benefitted from. Tsk tsk.
Rating: Summary: Odd And Interesting Review: M. Night Shyamalan followed "The Sixth Sense" with this offbeat film. While this film does not even come close to the brilliance of "Sixth Sense", it does hold it's own by itself. Bruce Willis stars as a family man whose marriage on the rocks. On a trip home on a train, the train is involved in a horrible accident. Everyone on board dies....except Willis. There's not a single scratch on him. He then begins to realize that he's never been sick, or has ever been really hurt. His son thinks he's some kind of superhero. Enter Samuel L. Jackson. He plays a comic book collector with a rare bone disease. His character tries to tell Bruce that he is indeed a superhero. I won't tell you what happens. You'll have to see for yourself. Shyamalan delivers the moddy colors and haunting shots like in "Sixth Sense". They work here as well. Jackson is really good in his role. Willis is really starting to become a 'real' actor. Everybody always thought he was some dimbulb action star. How wrong those people are. He is solid here. This movie is not going to be everyone's cup of tea. You'll either love it or absolutely hate it. You just have to remember one thing : It's just a movie.
Rating: Summary: Watch It Twice Review: When I saw this movie in the theater, I was expecting another Sixth Sense, and I was incredibly dissapointed. Then I went out and rented the DVD. The second viewing was just incredible. When this movie is watched more for the character development than the plot, it is absolutely amazing.
Rating: Summary: The Best Movie of 2000 Review: Let me just start by saying that I only see about 1 or 2 movies a year that I really love. This movie was one of them. M. Night Shyamalan makes movies the way they they should be made. He takes the time to tell a story the way it should be told. Other directors shoot their movies like music videos: constant music and ever changing camera angles. Shyamalan slows down and lets a great story unfold. His style really harkens back to that of a legend like Alfred Hitchcock. Even the way the film was advertised enhanced my enjoyment. Commercials for the movie didn't tell much about it so the viewer went in not really knowing what it was about. Do yourself a favor, check out the DVD.
Rating: Summary: An underrated gem. Review: After surviving a horrific train crash, the only sole survivor is David Dunn (Bruce Willis in a underrated performance) came out of the train crash without a single scratch in him. Then he meets a mysterious strange (Samuel L. Jackson), who believes in the world of comic books more than the real world but the stranger has the answer for David has been searching. Written and Directed by M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense, Sings, Wide Awake) made an strong, extremely underrated film that is a first-rate Cult Classic. DVD`s has an stunning ananmorphic Widescreen (2.35:1) transfer & Superb DTS 5.1 Surround Sound and also included in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound (Also alivable in French & Spanish tracks). 30 minutes worth of Deleted Scenes and more. The most underrated film of the year: 2000. Digitally Mastered in THX Picture Quality and Sound. Panavision. Grade:A-.
Rating: Summary: Slow-Paced and Unaffecting Emotions Review: Remember "The Sixth Sense"? Low-key and slow paced, so that by the time of the climatic twist, you were so drawn in to the relationship between Haley Joel Osment and Bruce Willis that the twist almost seemed out of left field. Well, what worked for that movie proves dull and ineffectual here. Shayamalan frequently opts for unusual camera angles (a whole conversation between a young Samuel L. Jackson and his mother is shown through the reflection of a television; a conversation on a train is filmed between the seats of the next row)instead on focusing on the believeabitiy of his characters and their interactions themselves. For a movie about comic books, this seems so slow paced and without suspense that it is frequently boring. Everything is this movie is quiet-much like "The Sixth Sense"- and the characters seem so unhappy, avoid conversation, and unemtional that it doesn't prove to be interesting or realistic. Bruce Willis doesn't give much of a performance here- he carries a long face and a speaks in a flat tone slightly above a whisper throughtout the entire movie. There is great potential in the story, and maybe with another director chosen to heighten the suspense and character relationships, this could have been a great movie. But, as a follow-up to "The Sixth Sense", it proves to be very dissapointing.
Rating: Summary: It is a DRAMA, not an ACTION Review: I've heard people, not necessarily here at Amazon, complain that this film doesn't have enough content or action scenes. That's just plain ridiculous. Shyamalan utilizes the same technique that he did in "The Sixth Sense" to create an adventure that doesn't exactly have to be grandeur or epic to be thrilling and captivating. All of the creative aspects are great - writing, directing, acting, music. They all work well to build up to a climax that makes you realize that the movie would have been stupid if it had been made any other way. The story is about the suspense leading up to the discovery of the truth - not the effects of the truth. That being said, it is no wonder many people will quickly dismiss this as a dumb, boring movie. In a world when people pine for a quick fix of mindless one-liners and big guns a la "Tomb Raider," I'm impressed that "Unbreakable" was even made. If you are a fan of well-crafted drama/suspense movies, or possibly courtroom thrillers, and you don't mind a plot that can be a bit far-fetched, then you'll most likely enjoy this movie. But if you can't stand movies where "the people just talk," then skip this one and buy "Die Hard."
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