The Happening

[AGateFan]

Ok, I haven’t seen this movie, nor will I at this point, but I am curious what other people (who have views I am somewhat familiar with, as opposed to the random Rotten Tomatoes or Yahoo reviewer) think of this film.

When it comes to M. Night Shyamalan

• I LOVED The Sixth Sense
• I Despised (with the intense burning of a thousand suns) Signs
• I thought Unbreakable would have been a decent back-story for a superhero but was otherwise kind of meh
• I was OK with The Village, but I think only because I knew what the "twist" was before I watched the movie]
• I didn’t bother with the lady in the water thing

The trailers for this movie looked interesting. Something mysterious causing people to be paralyzed and then drop dead or something...looked freaky and mysterious in a good way. But keeping in mind that Signs and The Village looked freaky and mysterious in a good way, I decided I needed to spoil myself on the movie before decided to see it. Needless to say, I have been QUITE under whelmed by what I have read. There is no mysterious deaths so to speak.... I won’t spoil it, I guess, though it apparently spoils itself in the first 10 min.

Anyway (ok spoiler... I can’t help myself, and you can tell me where I am wrong)

Spoiler:

People committing suicide is not mysterious. It’s sad but not particularly interesting. Not when it’s nameless red shirts (nor when it’s advanced aliens species<yes this is a stargate comment not related to the movie>). The concept of people getting paralyzed and accidentally falling off a construction site as the previews appeared to show is interesting because it left me wondering "could the people still reason, were they awake, oh god the horror of falling and not being able to stop yourself"....that to me was a horrific yet interesting what if....... Just getting up and killing yourself voluntarily leaves me with nothing to grasp, nothing to wonder. You wanted to kill yourself, I guess that’s what you were thinking...okey dokey then.

Anyway the explanation for why they just up and kill themselves tries to be a "message" (one which I am already tired of as it has tended to spiral into a big money grab as most "sky are falling" secs do...wonder if THAT message is in the movie). But EVEN if you are a big fan of that particular "message" it isn't really even explained in a way that makes sense (seemingly, remember I am going off write-ups --- though 10-20 of them that all seemed to say the same thing).

M. Stick with me here buddy, losing your sense of self preservation does NOT EQUAL KILLING yourself. It would be more interesting if they went on about their lives but were just crazily reckless and THAT caused their deaths. What would be the purpose of just killing yourself, what would you get out of it? It’s not pleasure-full... now maybe if they were drinking, or eating themselves to death or doing crazy stunts. But it is so nonsensical that it doesn’t give you anything to really even contemplate. There is no "what if I didn’t have fear of death, what would I do"... no "horror of being aware what I am doing but doing it anyway".....there’s nothing for the victim or for the audience to identify with the victim.

I don’t know why I am so annoyed at a movie I haven’t seen. Maybe I looked at the commercials and thought there was going to be something here. Something like Sixth Sense or Jacobs Ladder or that movie with Robin Williams where he is dead... something that makes you pause and think and get chills.

So was what I read correct, or where they all just M. Night Shyamalan haters and I should see the movie (if only on DVD). Please let me know your opinions. For me this weekend I see Hulk...and maybe Kung Fu Panda instead.

[Lord batchi ball]

I liked the sixth sense, Signs, and Unbreakable.

With the Village Like you I knew about the twist at the end and I liked it, I think the twist was a little much for everyone so thats why the movie didn't do so good.

And I did'nt bother seeing the Lady in the water, looked dumb.

When I first saw the preview I thought it was a rip off of that Steven King movie where everyone in the airplane disapears, only in this movie it happens on a train. But now I see its like that but not completly.

Then I watched the Andromeda Strain and in that movie some people where killing themselves because of the disease. Like coppong their heads off with chainsaws, that was pretty insane.

So all in all I would say this movie is just a collection of some of the best parts of good movies put together to make yet anther retarded movie.

[ShadowMaat]

I've liked all MNS's stuff (some more than others) and I'm definitely going to give The Happening a try even though reviewers seem to be panning it left and right. *shrug* It's still entertainment, Shyamalan usually manages to do something interesting and it'll be a good excuse to eat nachos. That's all I really ask for. LOL!

[Trek_Girl42]

I liked the Sixth Sense
I loved Unbreakable
I enjoyed Signs (seen it twice)
The Village disgusted me. He plagiarized the whole damn movie! There is absolutely no way that he didn't; I had read the book he was accused of ripping off (it was a good YA book), and yeah. I kept expecting the movie to at least try to veer further from the book than it did, but it didn't really. I hope the author sued him- never heard what happened with that. If I were her I'd have been pissed.

So I won't be watching any of his new movies. But I'll still be re-watching Unbreakable.

[LoneStar1836]

People committing suicide in shocking, horrible ways (for whatever reason) does not seem all that appealing to me.

I thought it might actually be halfway decent based on the early trailers that didn't give much away, but as the trailers got more detailed, I've lost interest.

Won't be going to the movies to see this one. May eventually rent it though. Will be back to read peoples' reviews here if they do go and see it.


I loved The Sixth Sense the first time I saw it because I totally wasn't spoiled. After you know the ending, it just doesn't have the same impact upon rewatch.

Unbreakable was pretty good. Though I have yet to actually watch it all the way through in one complete sitting. I've caught a little bit of it here, a lot there, and the rest over there whenever I run across it on tv. So I think I have managed to see the whole movie. Just not at one time.

Signs. Meh. I eventually caught this one on tv. The ending is what kills it for me. The only thing that movie was good for is it provided the opportunity for Scary Movie 3 to spoof it. I love Scary Movie 3!

The Village. Did actually go and see this one at the theater for some reason. It was okay I suppose. I've never seen it again since.

Lady in the Lake (or whatever it was called). Never seen it.

[vaberella]

I ONLY liked the Sixth Sense, and could ONLY watch it once.

All his other stuff, I'm glad I waited until they were on television, I hated. They're not very surprising or frightening, he just knows when to throw in a loud sound.

However, I do want to see this film. Not because of Mark Wahlberg, who I've had a crush on since....Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch (yes I was into him BEFORE Calvin Klein and Fear, immortalized him). I just want to know what's killing them. The trailer makes me think it's something to do with the sound, but there was talk about the government doing testing. I just really want to know what's causing the killings rather than actually sitting through the film. Hulk, has actually caught more of my interest than The Happening.

[AGateFan]

I ONLY liked the Sixth Sense, and could ONLY watch it once.

All his other stuff, I'm glad I waited until they were on television, I hated. They're not very surprising or frightening, he just knows when to throw in a loud sound.

However, I do want to see this film. Not because of Mark Wahlberg, who I've had a crush on since....Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch (yes I was into him BEFORE Calvin Klein and Fear, immortalized him). I just want to know what's killing them. The trailer makes me think it's something to do with the sound, but there was talk about the government doing testing. I just really want to know what's causing the killings rather than actually sitting through the film. Hulk, has actually caught more of my interest than The Happening.

Do what I did and go read about it the movie. Thats what I did because I actually wanted to know what was causing the happenings to in order to decide if I want to see the movie. Pretty much every pro review I read "spoils" what the cause actually is. So IF you WANT to see the movie and DONT want to be spoiled, I would highly suggest NOT reading any reviews until you see it.

Hulk .... Hulk smash. Maybe I am not the most pure of Hulk fans, but I was enough of a fan not to like the first Hulk movie. This version of the Hulk IMHO freaking ruled... maybe not 100% on par with Iron Man but MUCH better then the last Hulk movie.

I am getting a sense that Marvel has taken their property back and have a "plan" and so far they are executing it to near perfection. Many, many nods to the original hulk TV series that fans (I think) will appreciate. If you are thinking of seeing it, I would recommend it.

(BTW dont know if it was just my movie theater or if they edited the ending but the "tag" for me came before the credits unlike Iron Man where it came after..... you will know the "tag" when you see it, so if you dont see anything that makes you think tag before the credits role, then stay... if you do, then no real reason to stay unless you like credits).

[ShadowMaat]

I think there's already a discussion thread for the Hulk.

Went to see The Happening this afternoon and I gotta admit, it's a real dud. *sigh* I kept my expectations low, but even The Village and Lady in the Water managed to have SOME entertainment value. The Happening, however, had a few unintentionally funny moments and a lot of IMO gratuitous carnage. Has he forgotten the lesson from Signs? Sometimes it's what you DON'T see that's scariest.

Spoiler:

First of all, I guessed the cause right in the opening scene. As soon as they showed a tree I was like, "AHA! We're being killed by trees!" And then when Weirdo Hot Dog guy confirmed my suspicion (although he included all plants, not just trees) I wondered if maybe I was wrong, but no, it was Attack of the Killer Plant Chemicals. *sigh* There was no twist and I won't include the scene in Paris where it starts all over again because the Crazy Scientist Guy had already said the first attack was just a precursor. Everything in this movie felt telegraphed loud and clear. There were one or two tense moments, but a majority of the movie may as well have "There was a tense atmosphere..." stamped all over it. It was obvious in the faces of the actors, it was obvious in the music, it was obvious in the camera angles, everything was very OMG!!1, but sitting in the audience I couldn't feel it, I just saw it. People were laughing at the scene where the zookeeper fed himself to the lions and I laughed with them because it was so cheesy. I'm not sure it was meant to be a silly moment, though. They also laughed when the guy laid down in front of the lawn mower thingy. Yeesh. I did think the bodies in the trees were creepy, but everything else felt overwrought. I think Night was trying too hard and I also think he would have been better off without showing us all those people committing suicide. Hearing it and/or seeing the aftereffects, maybe, but watching a car smash into a tree and the bodies being ejected from it? Not working for me. I think it'd have been better if we'd heard the crash and then seen the one guy come into view and sit down in the middle of the road, maybe with an artistic blood smear on his face or something. It would probably still have been silly, but maybe a little less so.

The premise is, of course, outlandish, but I think it could have been handled better than it was with maybe a few less gaping holes in logic. I must say, I'm starting to get a bit paranoid about the disappearing bees, though; they seem to be cropping up everywhere. Or, I suppose, NOT cropping up everywhere. I kinda wish something more had been done with that instead of using it just to set up a smirky science bit at the end. I think a better connection/parallel could have been made.

There were also way too many close-ups for my taste. And WTF was up with the random "watch Zooey fidget and do nothing for minutes at a time" bits? Script padding to make sure the movie was X minutes long? Whatever.

[vaberella]

Do what I did and go read about it the movie. Thats what I did because I actually wanted to know what was causing the happenings to in order to decide if I want to see the movie. Pretty much every pro review I read "spoils" what the cause actually is. So IF you WANT to see the movie and DONT want to be spoiled, I would highly suggest NOT reading any reviews until you see it.

Hulk .... Hulk smash. Maybe I am not the most pure of Hulk fans, but I was enough of a fan not to like the first Hulk movie. This version of the Hulk IMHO freaking ruled... maybe not 100% on par with Iron Man but MUCH better then the last Hulk movie.

I am getting a sense that Marvel has taken their property back and have a "plan" and so far they are executing it to near perfection. Many, many nods to the original hulk TV series that fans (I think) will appreciate. If you are thinking of seeing it, I would recommend it.

(BTW dont know if it was just my movie theater or if they edited the ending but the "tag" for me came before the credits unlike Iron Man where it came after..... you will know the "tag" when you see it, so if you dont see anything that makes you think tag before the credits role, then stay... if you do, then no real reason to stay unless you like credits).

**You should see my old posts on the Green thread, it was all Hulk and She-Hulk. Will watch.

As for The Happening. I'm on the fence. This is why I haven't officially seeked out the reasons behind why the people were dying. I was afraid I'd be disappointed by the excuse. Since I remember so many of MNS's films where you just feel real pissed when you find out the real reasons behind what is going on, normally it's lame.

I might not watch it, since I don't want to pay for it since I fear of losing my funds on something like that. Money is priceless now-a-days so I watch what I spend it on. I'm tired of being disappointed at a film so what I did was read some of the reviews. They didn't give away any spoilers but across the board it was considered crap. So I might wait until its released on dvd and give it a gander. Or, I'll sneak in to watch it when I go and see The Hulk!!

** A slight mention since I did a passing comparison between two films that I was thinking of watching and came out on the same day.

I think there's already a discussion thread for the Hulk.

Calm yourself. It was an aside, not a highjack.

[Jeffala]

*disappointed*

My review/recap:

Spoiler:

The Happening takes place over a 25 hour period on some random afternoon. Basically, something makes people go crazy and kill themselves. There was never any mention of homicidal behavior, just suicidal behavior. It starts in parks, and then spreads from there. It attacks large groups of people first, then smaller, and smaller until it attacks lone individuals. “The Event” as it’s called in the movie, is a neurotoxin. At first, everyone thinks it’s terrorists but it turns out—and get this sh!t—it’s actually plants. The plants are super-pissed for some reason, maybe because humans are raping their planet—who knows? Anyway, plants can talk to each other. They can also adapt themselves and begin emitting deadly neurotoxins. That is “the Event”. Trees are pissed and they’re taking their revenge by killing everyone.

Way to go M. Night, you really know how to make a guy feel like he got his money’s worth! <sarcasm>

My advice: save your money and rent the DVD. Better yet, just wait for it to come on TV. Then at least all you’re wasting is your time.

[ShadowMaat]

Spoiler:

The plants are super-pissed for some reason, maybe because humans are raping their planet—who knows?

Well, DUH!

Spoiler:

They're taking revenge on behalf of their friends, the poor ickle bees!

Muahaha. Although there was one scene that I thought was a complete waste of potential. Well, more so than usual.

Spoiler:

The nuclear power plant. I mean, holy cats! Can you imagine anything scarier than some plant-worker suiciding in a way that makes the plant blow up or melt down or something? I was totally waiting for the blinding flash and the mushroom cloud. Of course, given that Our Heroes were right there that wasn't likely to happen, but maybe they could have hidden in a refrigerator or something.

Oh wait, wrong movie.

[vaberella]

*disappointed*

My review/recap:

Spoiler:

The Happening takes place over a 25 hour period on some random afternoon. Basically, something makes people go crazy and kill themselves. There was never any mention of homicidal behavior, just suicidal behavior. It starts in parks, and then spreads from there. It attacks large groups of people first, then smaller, and smaller until it attacks lone individuals. “The Event” as it’s called in the movie, is a neurotoxin. At first, everyone thinks it’s terrorists but it turns out—and get this sh!t—it’s actually plants. The plants are super-pissed for some reason, maybe because humans are raping their planet—who knows? Anyway, plants can talk to each other. They can also adapt themselves and begin emitting deadly neurotoxins. That is “the Event”. Trees are pissed and they’re taking their revenge by killing everyone.

Way to go M. Night, you really know how to make a guy feel like he got his money’s worth! <sarcasm>

My advice: save your money and rent the DVD. Better yet, just wait for it to come on TV. Then at least all you’re wasting is your time.

Yeah, I've been bored and gave into my interest. I even saw the theme of the story which was shocking. In it's lameness that is. Rotten tomatoes is so much better at keeping away spoilers. WSJ has no such regards, so don't go there.

Anyway, I read this review by a poster and found it the funniest thing.

Spoiler:

Ok I just got back from watching this movie….it was the biggest peice of trash I’ve ever seen. “The plants are trying to attack humans?” thats all I got out of the movie. literally. If you pay very close attention, theres a part where they show a bilboard selling houses and at the top it says “You Deserve This”. Is this movie trying to get people to stop trashing the environment? If it is…showing this movie is not the way to acheive this. I think that after watching this movie i’d want to trash the environment even more! It was terrible. Definitely worse than “The Village” (WHICH WAS TERRRIBBLLEE) along with “Lady in the Water” (WHICH WAS STUPID AS WELL)

Comment by Leslie - June 13, 2008 at 11:59 pm

http://blogs.wsj.com/buzzwatch/2008/...googlenews_wsj

Upon reading that, the first thing that crossed my mind was,

Spoiler:

Little shop of horrors, bop shoo bop.

Crazy. I'll wait until it shows on HBO.

[RoK]

I don't know if the movie's any good. I've seen previews for it and it looks interesting. So, I'm not too sure whether or not to see the movie.

[jds1982]

Yeah, I've been bored and gave into my interest. I even saw the theme of the story which was shocking. In it's lameness that is. Rotten tomatoes is so much better at keeping away spoilers. WSJ has no such regards, so don't go there.

Anyway, I read this review by a poster and found it the funniest thing.


http://blogs.wsj.com/buzzwatch/2008/...googlenews_wsj

Upon reading that, the first thing that crossed my mind was,

Spoiler:

Little shop of horrors, bop shoo bop.

Crazy. I'll wait until it shows on HBO.

More like Day of the Triffids. I was extremely dissappointed with this one, which was surprising because I've liked all of M Nights movies so far. I kept thinking, "boy, if only they had some anti-histamines, they'd be ok". Also, in my theater they didn't have the film aligned correctly, so we kept seeing sound mikes dangling above the actor's heads, it made it really hard to take them seriously.

[ShadowMaat]

Yeah, I sighted at least one mike. Pretty funny, although it doesn't speak well of the editing of the film. Of course, few things speak well to ANYTHING in this film, unfortunately. It's a shame. And whereas before I was looking forward to seeing Shyamalan try and tackle the Last Airbender movie, now I'm feeling a bit wary...