The Happening

Cinema review
Directed by M. Night Shyamalan
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Zooey Deschanel, John Leguizamo, Ashlyn Sanchez
Release date Out now

Something very odd is ‘happening’ in America – an outbreak of suicides is wiping out huge parts of the population. What on Earth is, er, happening?

After a couple of recent misfires, the jury is pretty much out on any new M. Night Shyamalan movie these days. So what’s the verdict on his latest release, The Happening? Let’s just say: oh dear…

This actually could have been a good movie – it’s an interesting concept and some of the haunting, brutal suicide scenes will stay with the viewer – but those are its very few good points.

The bad points? For a start, there’s abysmal acting from everyone involved – from Mark Wahlberg’s wide-eyed, empty-headed protagonist, Elliot, to Zooey Deschanel’s off-the-planet, cringe-inducingly awful performance as Elliot’s wife, to the normally good John Leguizamo hampered by being forced to wear a rather goofy get-up. And then there’s the strange, mad old lady who turns up towards the end and sends the film off into even more bizarre territory (for no reason whatsoever). Honestly, everyone’s performance in this film sucks.

But we can’t just blame the actors - sadly, the ultimate blame must lie with Mr. Shyamalan. Anyone who thinks grass and trees blowing in the wind is scary, or manages to depict some truly horrible suicides that make the audience laugh out loud, should probably have had a re-think. Martin Eden