This movie is the equivalent of stoner philosophy: delusional enough to think its smorgasbord of zany ideas are worth profound consideration and presented with utter conviction. This movie primarily exists for showcasing the amazing acting prowess of James McAvoy and pretending M. Night Shyamalan is still relevant. To be fair, he's far from horrible behind the lens, capable of creating wonderful and unique shots, crisp and clear action and, amazing scenes of tension and suspense. Unfortunately he then wastes these opportunities with unlikable protagonists who; frankly, after self-thwarting or obliviously missing their 5th possible escape route, deserve their fates. There are interesting ideas presented, with a decent enough framing for loads of exposition, but the characters act uniformly moronic. Shyamalan proves again he can be a extremely talented director that should simply be kept from the script writing process. I am actually somewhat irked that this is considered a finished movie, as it has no real resolution and never quite finishes. It feels incomplete and in fact, the signature 'twist' from Shyamalan is the lack of resolution and closure is infuriatingly purposeful. Beyond the amazing performances, direction and a smattering of interesting ideas this movie barely qualifies an actual movie.
Split