Unbreakable

I was very impressed by "The Sixth Sense" as a teen but unfortunately, the ending was spoiled for me on the school bus before I even saw the movie. Thankfully, I went into "Unbreakable" with only knowledge of the premise and came away entertained. Upon second viewing though, the movie is not as good. Director M. Night Shyamalan nevertheless delivers a visually appealing show that supports the story.

The cinematography is the most important aspect of this show but it acts in service to the narrative. The aim with many shots was to reproduce a comic book panel. We see David and Elijah talking in the background between steel bars in the foreground and the young Elijah and his mother are seen via the reflection in the TV. For the visions that David has, Shyamalan places his camera to replicate the POV of a security camera. It is symbolic of David's job in life. "Unbreakable" is also full of color motifs and symbolism. The scenes involving Elijah for example use glass and mirrors. David at first dismisses Elijah’s theories but can't deny that it makes some sense. He begins to test himself. David's instinct to see the crimes that people commit for example is a muscle that he has to develop and exercise. A lot of movies these days depict the destruction of relationships but this movie portrays the salvation of a relationship. David and Audrey are seriously thinking about separating but as the story progresses, they rekindle their love thanks to the events that take place. The line from Mrs. Price, "This one has a surprise ending", is foreshadow but this is after all the same filmmaker who gave us one of the most surprising endings in 90's cinema.

During the filming of "The Sixth Sense", Shyamalan talked about his next film idea with Bruce Willis. During post-production, Shyamalan then began to write "Unbreakable" with Willis and Samuel L. Jackson in mind. Before the Marvel Cinematic Universe and before "The Incredibles", Samuel L. Jackson was already part of the superhero genre as Mr. Glass. By the way, this is third film that Willis and Jackson have worked together on. Robin Wright Penn's performance is such that you forget her past roles as Buttercup and Jenny. It wasn't until a future M. Night Shayamalan film that I found out Spencer Treat Clark was not only in this film but also in "Gladiator" the same year. I can't believe I didn't recognize him. Shayamalan has a cameo as a suspected drug dealer and he would reprise this character in a future film of his. I like James Newton Howard's work and his musical score for this movie was noteworthy too.

The marketing tried to liken "Unbreakable" unto "The Sixth Sense" and many, including Shayamalan, were critical of this because it affected the reception. Some consider this film to be one of the best superhero films ever made. I liked seeing the show the first time but the second time wasn't the same kind of experience. What I continue to be grateful of is that the movie's cinematography backs up the story being told. The visuals hardly ever have an excuse to outshine the narrative. I never expected this film to be the start a franchise in that the child and mother in red that bump into David outside a stadium end up having more significance than we thought back in 2000.

3.5 Stars out of 5