DVD Challenge #5: THE HAPPENING

The Happening
2008
R
Run-time: 1 hours, 31 minutes

Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Zooey Deschanel, John Leguizamo & Betty Buckley




Before you start jumping the gun, there's a perfectly legitimate reason for me to own The Happening. I first saw the movie on its opening weekend with a friend of mine, and in the beginning, we were actually intrigued and enthralled by the originality of the storyline. An unknown airborne toxin causes people to lose control of their wits, leading to their eventual suicide. Sounds creepy enough, right? However, one particular scene changed the film from a thriller to a comedy. If you read my post about finding the beauty in bad movies, you'll have seen that clip. At that moment, I literally laughed out loud in the theater, and within the next few minutes, the rest of the audience had joined my chorus of laughter.

This film's screenplay is arguably one of the worst I've ever experienced. It starts out strong enough, but it ultimately starts to spiral out of control. In the beginning, we get an effective thriller that does well to pique our interest, but it slowly turns into a movie that sees our characters running away from the wind. When you're simply bouncing from suicide to suicide, there's really not much for the audience to latch onto, except perhaps the acting performances.

(Un)fortunately, we're given some career-worst performances from both Wahlberg and Deschanel. I could probably go on for hours about the other major supporting roles, but most of the blame for this flick lands on our two leads. To be fair, a lot of the problem lies with how the characters were written, but you'd think that such consistent actors as Mark and Zooey would find a way to make the childishness of their characters seem a little more believable. As it stands now, they're just childish, all the way down to wearing mood rings to show their love for another.

Overall, The Happening truly is a massive joke that Shyamalan probably thinks holds a massive political statement. Unfortunately for him, it quickly turns into a laugh-fest that simply cannot be taken seriously. There's a reason I placed it on my list of favorite "so bad, it's good" films and why it now ranks as the worst film I've ever seen. Sometimes unintentional comedies are the most satisfying.

Previous DVD Challenge: KUNG POW: ENTER THE FIST (2002)

Movie Review: THE LINCOLN LAWYER

THE LINCOLN LAWYER

2011
R

The Lincoln Lawyer is a 2011 dramatic thriller directed by Brad Furman. It follows defense attorney Mick Haller (Matthew McConaughey) as he takes on the case of a young man named Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe) who has been accused of the assault and battery of a young prostitute. As Mick delves into the case, he starts to question whether Louis is actually telling the truth when he tries to explain his innocence. With the help of his private investigator Frank (William H. Macy), Mick starts to see parallels between this case and a previous case that landed his client in prison for life. The deeper that he gets into the plot, the more he feels like he and his family are not entirely safe. Still, he attempts to take matters into his own hands, using the best and the worst facets of an admittedly flawed justice system.

Of the three major releases that opened today, The Lincoln Lawyer was probably the one of which you were least likely to hear. However, it quickly garnered the most positive reviews on the online review aggregate RottenTomatoes.com, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I also tend to like McConaughey in all of his ridiculousness, so it seemed like this might actually be the best bet of the weekend. Ladies and gents, The Lincoln Lawyer does not disappoint.

Let's start screenplay. We have a tightly-written storyline that slams the pedal to the metal and never once lets up off the gas. As soon as this engine gets rolling, it doesn't stop until the screen finally cuts to black. The screenplay offers quite a few twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat, wondering just what's going to happen next. I'll admit that there are a few predictable moments, but there were just as many twists that completely blindsided me, including one towards the end. Where the screenplay truly succeeds, however, is in its aforementioned pacing. The fast pace never lets you fall out of the story, almost daring you to try to keep up with everything that's going on. There isn't a ton of information being thrown at you, but it's enough to keep you engaged throughout the entire film.

I would also like to take the time to applaud the level of acting. While there's not going to be any Oscar winners coming from this movie, there were some fine performances. McConaughey proves that he still has what it takes to be a leading man in a film other than a terrible comedy (see: 2008's Fool's Gold, for example). I think I read that this was his first leading role in a dramatic film since 2006's We Are Marshall (also a good McConaughey role, for those wondering), and he definitely delivers this time around, bringing his usual reserved charisma that proves to create a very likable character. Phillippe also does extremely well - and may deliver the best performance in the film - as a man on trial for such massive charges. But it doesn't stop there. This movie has a ton - and I mean, a TON - of recognizable actors floating around here and there. Along with the aforementioned Macy, you might recognize Marisa Tomei, Josh Lucas, John Leguizamo, Michael Peña (in another fantastic performance), Bob Gunton, Frances Fisher, Bryan Cranston (for you "Malcolm in the Middle" or "Breaking Bad" fans), Trace Adkins (for you country music fans), Shea Whigham (in a hilarious, scene-stealing role) and Michaela Conlin (for you "Bones" fans).

Overall, The Lincoln Lawyer is a taut thriller that's going to keep you entertained throughout its entire run-time. It's not really bringing anything drastically new to the table, but a great screenplay and great acting bring this one together to create one of the better films I've seen thus far this year.

Movie Review Summary:

Grade: B+
2 Thumbs Up