I feel like if you really like psychology, this movie is great. So much going on. Cooper’s trauma with his Mom. The fact that his Mom may have been abusive toward him because she knew what he was. The anger Cooper feels towards his wife for him not getting to see his children again. The fact that you can tell his wife fears one of their children could turn out like him ( based on her conversation with the profiler). That Riley runs up and hugs her father even though she knows what he is. The fact that the trauma she has experienced may one day cause her to resent her mother for turning him in because to her , he was a good Dad. And then the psychological trick on the audience of the whole movie being from the point of view of a serial killer and yet , there is that feeling that you kind of hope he gets away. We know he is a monster but we don’t really see that side of him until the end. Yes, we hear about his horrible crimes but we don’t watch him commit them. It’s almost as if we are just as blind as his family is even though we know from very early on ( or even before hand if you watch the trailer ) that he is a bad person. I’ve always been fascinated by people routing for the bad guy to win in a movie. I do it. But I don’t think that makes me a psycho. The opposite. I have empathy for him. Yes he is a monster but hey he’s a good guy a lot of the time LOL. Also too , I think people are able to identify that this is all fictional and it’s safe because there is truly no danger. All of that aside, it’s just a fun movie. Which is odd given the subject content. Knock at the Cabin felt emotionally draining. The tone of this movie was surprisingly light for M Night. The jokes were dark but funny. Of course Cooper gets out of every crazy impossible situation he is put in because otherwise it would be a pretty boring movie! I actually really liked the music and how the songs corresponded to what Cooper was experiencing in the movie. The way the concert was intentionally shot so that we don’t get too close to the stage until the characters do. The reason Cooper resents Lady Raven is interesting. On the one hand he is happy to see that Riley forgives those who have wronged her but he hates that Lady Raven does. And when he sees her use an inhaler , it’s almost a relief to him that she is not perfect on the inside ( in his twisted mind). I could go on and on but even if you don’t want to play arm chair psychologist , it’s a fun thriller. It’s not gonna win any awards but that was never the point.
4:10 I dont see how this is a good defense. Even if something is intentional doesn't mean it works. And that doesn't mean someone knows what they are doing. If I write cringey dialogue and someone likes the cringey dialogue thats one thing. But i dont see how purposely making cringey dialogue makes it somehow good because he did it on purpose... Unless the films themes match with the cringey dialogue. And i dont think this film does. 8:05 I get if the film was going for commentary. But even if M Night was going for commentary from this angle i dont think it works. Coops intelligence is not as smart as he thinks because most of his ways of gathering info is due to the incompetence of cops and workers giving him way too much information when they realistically wouldn't. Like the T shirt guy or the Swat officer. Also in real life. Most serial killers are middle aged straight white males. So in reality the cops wouldnt just automatically assume every other person who is a women or a minority is a serial killer. Especially if the film reveals through its twist that they already know that the Killer is a male
I would agree with if it’s intentional doesn’t mean it works. Lake Placid is an intentional ridiculous very campy creature movie about a giant crocodile which works. Venom is an intentional campy super hero movie that knows what it is, and has fun with it including a talking alien symbiote that talks much like Cookie Monster. Now Ouija Shark is an intentional terrible movie that doesn’t work mostly because the screenwriter doesn’t understand how to write a ridiculous campy movie. Multiple other intentional terrible movies have been made that are challenging to watch.
@@maskedman5657 I’m agreeing this is aimed to be serious much like Seven, I Know What You Did Last Summer, The Dark Half, The Boston Strangler, Righteous Kill, and any serious themed movies that focus on a main character that is a murderer.
Sydney, a flaw that I think you can understand for this movie is M Night having his daughter in this movie as a successful professional singer seems just very convenient to show her off in that way because this cat and mouse thriller is set in the area of a Concert. It wouldn’t be a glaring flaw if it was a movie that is a musical drama with M Night’s playing an aspiring singer.
If you have an open mind enough to accept that characters and events may not happen the way we are used to, then it is quite possible to enjoy the original movies)
I can't watch Unbreakable again, M Night just does not understand subtlety. Everything is so on the nose and heavy handed. Couldn't he have had a modern retelling of the super hero mythos in a modern real setting but without it ever referencing comic books? Putting comic books right in our face as viewers was so heavy handed and cringe. Ok bro we get the point you're trying to make but I would only watch the rest of the trilogy if an edit was made that removed all the heavy handed references to comic books were removed and only subtle suggestions and allusions remained..
As you can see from old reviews, many viewers who watched it in 2000 did not understand even such a direct conversation. M.Night is constantly looking to coordinate his ideas with the audience's interest. Plus, without directly naming the comics, he wouldn't be able to tell Elijah's story, how he came to understand his place in this world.
This film was another gem from A24. As both a Wrestling fan and Film enthusiast, I absolutely LOVED this film. Saw it twice in theaters and I own the blu-ray ✌️😁
This one wasn't for me, but i was excited to see your review and I really enjoyed hitting all the M Night movies I hadn't seen earlier this week in a marathon, I'm now an avid Lady In The Water defender lol
I had a lot of problems with Trap, but I still enjoyed the stupidity at points. Shyamalan is quite hit or miss for me personally but I like how he makes movies that feel original.
The Return of the Queen 🫡 I thought Trap was really fun and I loved watching the characters trying to outwit each other. Jamie might be one of my favorite characters of the year
o geesh, i cannot even bring myself to watch "Old", having seen the trailer a few times.....you mentioned "The Village" and "Signs"-two movies i love(d), but wonder if i went back to them, i would still hold dear. The Village always worked for me, because shyamalan's stilted dialog fit that isolated/created environment, and the love story-as-twist, in my mind, was pitch perfect. i'm sorta averse to all-things-m. knight any more, and find his dialog to be beyond amateur-sorry sidney!!! i would truly be interested in a film in which he hires a cowriter, because his concepts can be rad to be sure. i just came up with this tee idea: M. KNIGHT CAN'T WRITE 😬 i LOVE your reviews!
@@strikebreakings lol there was nothing even slightly original about this movie😭🤣🤣🤣 the last 45 minutes is borrowing tropes you've seen from 50 other movies. Man, I guess somebody just started watching movies🤣
Great video! I also saw it twice on opening day. I had that much fun. I plan on seeing it a few more times in theaters. Kudos to Josh Hartnett...and his shirtless scene. ❤️
I too thought the concert atmosphere was really well done. On an audio level, the music itself sounded authentically live and the sound of the crowd was well mixed. The feel of both the mundanity and excitement that comes from waiting for an act to come on as well as the disorienting nature of wading through a crowd in an arena were spot on. Also a nice touch to include the opening act and how the arena was mostly empty at that point 😆
I can't agree with you more. I saw Trap twice on Friday and I'm still thinking about it and noticing little things that make me want to see it again. The reaction people have been having to the dialogue is something people always seem to quibble about whenever M. Night puts out a movie. That, and the criticism that the third act falls apart. As far as the dialogue goes... a filmmaker is always crafting the world that they see in their head when they tell a story, and the dialogue is always indicative of that. He's always written very deliberately expressed dialogue, and, at times, even directed his actors to deliver their lines slowly and methodically. It isn't about how people talk in the real world, it's how characters speak in HIS. A lot of his cinematic influences aren't even American, and that could very well explain how the dialogue he writes is constructed and delivered. The criticism detractors of his films give I can compare to at least two other directors -- Brian De Palma and Dario Argento. And you can't say they don't make very stylized films with sensibilities that don't always lean into realism. Before I saw Trap, I heard enough comparisons to De Palma's Snake Eyes that I was even more excited to see it.
I came in with low expectations after listening to the film people I follow telling me how bad Trap is. It's ridiculous and it really stretches the boundaries of plausibility, but that wasn't a huge breaker for me for how fun it was. The camp that Shyamalan provides has grown on me to be more of a feature than a bug.
OMG where did you get your shirt!?? Btw THANK YOU for being so positive about M. Night. My whole life I've felt like a lone defender of his works. It's so refreshing to see someone else take a stand!
Josh Harnett was really good … just too bad he was in this movie . This film was promotional album with a movie written around it . Shocked when the ticket didn’t come with a cd single .
I wish there was less describing in the movie and more showing i.e. the beast in split, the flashbacks in unbreakable, the aliens in signs. Missed that classic m night tension for sure. Also he gouged out the fbi agents eyes and nobody shot him.. it feels so strange to not let these flaws interrupt my experience with the film.
I enjoyed it too. Mild spoilers below. There were some nitpicks I had, such as the concert being present for just a tad too much, instead of more focus on Cooper navigating the place, maybe even offing someone. Also, while I can appreciate not having everything shown to us all the time, I kind of wanted to see how Cooper changed clothes so quickly, escaped from certain places or vehicles so quickly and so on. Other than that, I liked the film. I also went into it expecting an odd style, that M Knight is known for, kind of that old fashioned style that you'd see from films of the 50's and 60's, exaggerated way of saying dialogue, and so on, so I wasn't taken by surprise like some reviewers seem to have been. Seeing Haley Mills was awesome and cool, and an inspired choice for the role. Hartnett was genuinely good in the role and at times very creepy, especially near the end. Very heavy Psycho vibes, typical of M Knight, since he loves and homages Hitchcock. The music during the finale was excellent, and yes, the kitchen discussion scene at the end was very good. I don't understand why many were critical of the actresses in this, because to me they were great and believable. People also called the police stupid in this, but to me they were rather smart, most of them. They questioned Cooper more than once, and never fully trusted him, not even when he was being guided by Lady Raven, and he was only able to get past them twice. Nice review!
Respectfully disagree. I think this was on par with “after earth” Terrible acting (imo) from almost everyone. Plot really made no sense when you think about it for longer than 10 secs. Characters making moves that would only happen to move the plot along. I’m pretty sure it was just made to get some screen time/ work for his daughter. I actually loved “old” but holy moley I couldn’t disagree with your take more. Glad someone enjoyed it but this was a 1.5/10 for me and nothing about this challenged anything or pushed a boundary. Most of my theatre realized this and were laughing at the 2nd /3rd act especially.
My genuine opinion about the movie is it was good to me all the way up until the last half hour the ending to me really made no sense. It just was eye rolling bad but I did enjoy Josh Hartnett‘s performance. I did not know a lot of people actually like this guy as an actor that everybody’s gonna praise his performance because he does do a fantastic job as a serial killer trapped, but some of the plot holes are just hard to ignore even though I did my best to ignore, but all this is the good and the bad of M night Shyamalan‘s movies wrapped in into one, but I did enjoy it for what it was
This was a great review! If I had not seen the movie, I would want to see the movie. It was great to see it through your eyes and insights on cinema and your love for M. Night. I did not enjoy it as much as you did, but I did enjoy Josh Hartnett's performance.
First off where is your shirt from? Second I liked the movie, especially the resurgence of Josh Hartnett as an actor. No hate but I'm super tired of seeing the same old guys Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Leo DiCaprio take all the lead roles. There were so many great 90's male actors and I want to see their talents as well. Also I believe that M. Night Shyamalan’s films are distinguished by their unique storytelling approach, which blends ordinary experiences with profound themes, unexpected twists, and emotional depth. By focusing on relatable characters and exploring deep philosophical questions, Shyamalan’s work offers viewers a different perspective and a sense of hope, making his films stand out in the landscape of contemporary cinema.
he's the only director that gets me to watch his movies only once. I was excited for this one but won't be going to see it now that I heard it's an advertisement for his daughters music
I loved the 3rd act...like, you felt sorry for him...but creeper out by him too...his wife...seeing a killers big awesome family that you'd think...how this guy? Makes you think...
I thought this movie was excellent. I was SO entertained by it. A lot more entertaining than M. Nights move, "Knock at the Cabin". I will always forever and always watch his movies. Always different than other stories in Hollywood.
Saw it last night it was a lot of fun it can be a little ridiculous but the movie realizes that and has fun with it I laughed a lot and it had me on the edge of my seat
