TRAP

Treasure M. Night Shyamalan! Protect him at all costs.

In an industry which, these days, has a tendency to lean toward the serious, he is something of a lone wolf, willing to go all in on an original premise, and the silliness that comes with it.

The premise here: A father and daughter - Cooper (Josh Hartnett) and Riley (Ariel Donoghue) respectively - attend a Lady Raven (Saleka Night Shyamalan) concert. 

So far, so straight forward.

The typical Night Shyamalan slant though is that as well as being a doting father, Cooper is also a serial killer - dubbed The Butcher - and the concert is a set up - the titular trap - to catch him.

With a premise like this there are two routes you could follow.

You could lean in to The Butcher, explore his crimes, explore the evil and the brutality and the darkness. 

Or you could lean in to Cooper. Explore the father daughter relationship, the dual personality and fully embrace the silliness that that brings/

There are definitely arguments to say that the former would have brought about a more interesting film, but for me the latter delivered the more enjoyable one, and Josh Hartnetts performance just highlights this.

As his character schemes and plans his escape - almost a reverse heist - he dives head first into the ridiculousness of the script. He just about stays on the right side of unhinged, allowing a believability to the fact that he could get away with hiding in plain sight, even if his look of delight - almost orgasmic - as he hears others describe his crimes almost shows him up.

Hartnett balances both sides well, hamming it up and chewing the scenery all the way through.

Saleka, as Lady Raven, holds up well acting against him, especially as it’s her first acting role. She is actually given a fair amount to do and, thought there are a couple of moments where her lack of experience shows she mostly does well with what she’s given.

Her music, likewise, while not my cup of tea, really works in the context of the film. It feels entirely authentic that the she would become a sensation among teenage girls and is an anchor that grounds the film among its many flights of fancy.

For me the main hurdle that the film was going to have was who to root for. You typically root for your main character, yet here he’s a serial killer. For a while though I did find myself on his side, willing him to escape. 

How the film deals with this is well done though, and without going into to much detail there is a swift, sleek role reversal during the films second act which subtly shifts the perception of power and, with it, the audiences allegiances. 

M. Night Shyamalans commitment to his vision, his commitment to his own ideas, is something that should be applauded. They may not always be hits, they may never be anyones favourite film of the year, but they are pure Hollywood. Escapism.  And we all need a bit of that.

2024 also seems to be the year where he wanted to just spend some time with his daughters. From producing Ishana’s impressive if flawed directorial debut The Watched, to directing Saleka here, and I am there for it. 

The Night Shyamalans are here to stay, and this is something that we should all be celebrating.