Few filmmakers have had quite the career trajectory ofM. Night Shyamalan, whose early hit thrillers catapulted him into stardom before a string of critical misses that damaged his reputation. Despite his name being attached to a few movies that many found disastorous, Shyamalan’s ambition and earnestness has led to a second wave of B-movie thrillers likeSplit,Old, and his latest,Trap, starringJosh Hartnett. These movies have remained divisive among both fans and critics, some of whom embrace his modern, original, imaginative thrills, while others hold onto his early period as his most successful works, especiallyThe Sixth Sense.
AlthoughThe Sixth Sensehas become perhaps the most culturally impactful film in Shyamalan’s body of work, his most powerful filmmaking is actually found in the movie he made next.Unbreakable, Shyamalan’s fourth feature, had a quieter reputation upon release in 2000. Following upThe Sixth Sensewould be a difficult feat for any filmmaker, but what has become clear in the nearly 25 years sinceUnbreakable’s release is that it is one of Shyamalan’s best films.Bruce Willisstars inUnbreakableas David Dunn, a man who survives a catastrophic train wreck completely unharmed, and discovers that he may have superhuman abilities. Willis is joined bySamuel L. Jacksonas Mr. Glass, the comic book-obsessed antagonist with a fragile bone disorder,Robin Wrightas Dunn’s wife Audrey, andSpencer Treat Clarkas Joseph, Audrey and David’s young son.
The heart of the movie is the dynamic between David and Joseph, as Joseph grows suspicious of his father’s abilities while trying to connect with him. Their relationship culminates in an emotional beat that is the most powerful moment in any of Shyamalan’s works.The movie is a loving, passionate homage to comic book archetypes. The superhero genre has boomed in the years since, growing so saturated that many have soured on anything with that label. What makesUnbreakabledifferent is that it is comfortable skipping out on the flashy spectacle in favor of compelling, human drama that is emphasized and thematically textured by superhero media tropes.Unbreakableoffers a grounded approach, and an incredibly compelling one at that.
Unbreakable
M. Night Shyamalan presents Unbreakable, a superhero thriller that sees Bruce Willis star as David Dunn, a man who survives a train derailment completely unscathed. Now discovering that he has superpowers, he is invited to meet a man who may know more about his unique condition working at a comic book shop. What begins as a discovery of who he is and why he has these powers turns into David assuming the role of a reluctant hero in an ordinary world.
‘Unbreakable’ Is Some of M. Night Shyamalan’s Best Filmmaking
M. Night Shyamalan quickly developed a reputation as the “nextSteven Spielberg” after his first few hits, following aNewsweek cover-story in 2002that branded him as such. This billing arguably set Shyamalan up to deliver a standard of quality that simply no filmmaker could match, but his career has weathered rough periods, and he’s come out the other side proving himself one of our most visionary, unique genre filmmakers. Along with his proclivity to tell suspenseful stories with interwoven, twisted narratives, one of Shyamalan’s greatest assets as a filmmaker is his eye for composition.
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‘Signs’ stars Mel Gibson as a former priest who is forever changed after discovering crop circles in his fields.
One thing Shyamalan and Spielberg certainly have in common is that bothunderstand and masterfully apply motivated camera movementsthroughout even the most rudimentary of scenes. InUnbreakable, we are given David Dunn’s introduction on a train, and what follows is a back-and-forth communication between him and a woman who he tries to court for a potential affair. What could easily have been filmed in a wide shot or following the simple shot-reverse shot method is instead framed as thiscinematic tennis matchwhere the camera, positioned in front of Dunn and the woman, volleys back and forth to only offer a narrow view between the train’s row of seats. This dynamic direction is a great example of the extra effort you see on screen in Shyamalan’s films. Another of these great camera movements comes when Dunn begins adding weight to his bench press, and the camera pushes in and out along with his reps to signify his newfound, superhuman strength.This scene, in Dunn’s home gym, is also pivotal to setting up the father-son dynamicat the heart of the film’s most powerful moment.
M. Night Shyamalan’s Humanist Approach Makes ‘Unbreakable’s Climax So Compelling
After David saves some children from a home invader, a story about it runs in the local newspaper, and Joseph reads it at the breakfast table. The emotional swell as Joseph realizes he was right all along and that his dadisa genuine superhero is enough to make you well up. Clark’s performance as a child processing this overwhelming information, looking up at his father with his jaw practically dropping, is remarkable. Willis gives a perfect, knowing response, simply miming a shushing motion to communicate that it must remain a secret between David and Joseph. There’s a scene inJawswhereRoy Scheiderand his on-screen son share an endearing moment at the dinner table, as his son mimics Scheider’s exhausted, stressed out body language. It speaks to the simple resonance of a compelling father-son relationship on screen, andthe endearing admiration a son can have for his father.Unbreakabletakes this basic setup of a father-son moment while sharing a meal, and makes a powerful, climactic rush out of it.
This scene also hits like a ton of bricks following the tension between David and Joseph that built throughout the film. Joseph became suspicious of his father’s abilities fairly early in the story, and grew frustrated at David’s refusal to acknowledge them. This culminates in a suspenseful sequence where Joseph aims a gun at David in their family’s kitchen, and David and Audrey must talk him out of using it as it could put all of them in danger.
Unbreakable, being a relatively lower-budget movie that lovingly plays off superhero tropes, does not offer the high-flying, explosive action of modern superhero films. Instead, Shyamalan puts all the weight onto character moments like this breakfast scene.Unbreakableis a human drama just as much as it is a superhuman thriller, and each moment shared between Joseph and David in this filmspeaks to Shyamalan’s true strength. His narratives are shocking, his filmmaking is crafty, but the single greatest asset in Shyamalan’s toolkit is the fact that he always wears his heart on his sleeve. The catharsis, recognition, and awe that comes over Joseph’s face as he looks up at his father says more about heroism than any climactic beat down ever could, and that sincerity is why, in an industry that grows increasingly cynical, Shyamalan’s stories will always matter.
Unbreakableis available to watch on Max in the U.S.
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