Happening, The

34

[Jump To: Synopsis Reviews]

20th Century Fox (91 minutes)
and M. Night Shyamalan
Mark Wahlberg , Zooey Deschanel , John Leguizamo , Betty Buckley , Spencer Breslin , and Ashlyn Sanchez

Rating: R for violent and disturbing images

Summary: It begins with no clear warning. It seems to come out of nowhere. In a matter of minutes, episodes of strange, chilling deaths that defy reason and boggle the mind in their shocking destructiveness, erupt in major American cities. What is causing this sudden, total breakdown of human behavior?For Philadelphia high school science teacher Elliot Moore what matters most is finding a way to escape the mysterious and deadly phenomenon. (Twentieth Century Fox)

Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times:
(75) A movie that I find oddly touching. It is no doubt too thoughtful for the summer action season, but I appreciate the quietly realistic way Shyamalan finds to tell a story about the possible death of man.

Rene Rodriguez
Miami Herald:
(75) Even when his scripts aren't working, Shyamalan knows how to frame shots and build suspense. The Happening, even more than his previous films, has a visual elegance and subtlety that helps to overcome the less successful aspects of the plot.

Stina Chyn
Film Threat:
(60) Whether you’re a casual or an ardent follower of M. Night Shyamalan's films, The Happening could alienate or dominate your thinking cap. Remember--it's perfectly acceptable to laugh one second and shriek the next.

Manohla Dargis
The New York Times:
(60) A divertingly goofy thriller with an animistic bent, moments of shivery and twitchy suspense and a solid lead performance from Mark Wahlberg.

Carina Chocano
Los Angeles Times:
(50) It doesn't help that Wahlberg, whose work usually ranges from solid to inspired, is bewildering off-key here, though it may have something to do with playing off Deschanel, who reduces the whole marriage story line to a parody.

©2003 Metacritic Inc. | metacritic.com