By
Phil Leckman
Arizona Daily Wildcat
"Sixth Sense" director brings chills, suspense despite tacked on surprise ending
Nineteen ninety-nine was a great year for movies - one full of so many stunning performances that the Oscars were finally worth watching for more than Cher's wardrobe. In all the enthusiasm, it was easy for a movie fan to get carried away and interpret the cinematic bounty as the beginning of a new golden age of cinema.
But while making one awe-inspiring film is quite an accomplishment, making two such masterpieces is almost unheard of. In many ways, critical success can be almost as damning as failure. Successful actors, directors and studios are under intense pressure to repeat their achievements and most, sadly, cannot quite shoulder the burden.
For proof, just look at the class of 2000's current fortunes. "Blair Witch II: Book of Shadows," Artisan Entertainment's attempt to capitalize on "Blair Witch" hype, was the biggest misstep - it was big-budget, big-concept and a big box-office disaster.
But it was not alone. Angelina Jolie followed up her Oscar for "Girl, Interrupted" by joining ultimate Hollywood prostitute Nicholas Cage in "Gone in 60 Seconds," a vain stab at returning the car movie genre to its "Smokey and the Bandit" prime. Even "American Beauty" Oscar-winner Kevin Spacey broke his streak of excellent career choices by appearing in the syrupy "Pay it Forward."
Into this carnage comes "Unbreakable," the new film by "Sixth Sense" writer/director M. Night Shyamalan. Expectations for Shyamalan were already high after the success of his first ground-breaking thriller, and the misfortunes of his fellow Oscar nominees only heightened the pressure. Fortunately for fans of inventive, intelligent cinema, "Unbreakable," the story of an ordinary man confronted with the possibility that he may possess superhuman abilities, more or less weathers the scrutiny.
With "The Sixth Sense," Shyamalan revealed himself as a master of cinematic staging, generating more unease from a sudden drop in temperature or a half-seen flash of movement than the typical horror director could muster from an army of knife-wielding psychos. These talents are again displayed in "Unbreakable." Shyamalan creates tension and foreboding from the most mundane sources - the far-off ambient noise of factory machines and a character's split-second reflection in a window pane.
Shyamalan's efforts to make the bizarre believable are again assisted by a talented cast, led by "Sixth Sense" star Bruce Willis. As David Dunn, a security guard and former college football player who miraculously survives a horrific train accident, Willis once again skillfully portrays an ordinary man forced into extraordinary circumstances against his will. Willis is matched by Samuel L. Jackson as Elijah Price, an outlandish art dealer and superhero-comic fan who attempts to convince Dunn that his survival may be more than just fate. Jackson is at his bombastic best here - his eccentric, ardent Price rivals his work in "Pulp Fiction."
While "Unbreakable" is thus mostly successful, there is one glaring exception. Like "The Sixth Sense," "Unbreakable" features a major plot twist in its closing minutes, a twist that completely changes the audience's understanding of the film. Given the hype this device garnered for "Sixth Sense," it is perhaps understanding that Shyamalan tried to pull the same trick again. Unfortunately, this surprise ending is much less effective, and seems forced and tacked on. While "Unbreakable" succeeds despite this blunder, it is difficult to see why Shyamalan bothered with this vain attempt to make lightning strike twice.
