I am extremely happy that the Eastrail trilogy exists, but I extremely sad about how it chose to go off. I will recommend it, but man, I feel so mixed about it.
Good : Shyamalan gives us a potentially great movie with some unforgivable flaws. The setting and the concept looks really incredible. Bruce Willis looked really good after a very long time. He cared for his role and was great as David Dunn. Naturally, James McAvoy gives an incredible performance as Kevin and the other personalities. Samuel Jackson kills it as Mr. Glass yet again. He is not in a role that we usually see him in, and he hasn't lost the touch in perhaps the most "against type" role he has ever done. The first act and how all the three lead characters are brought together is quite good. There are emotional scenes and deaths. All of them hit the perfect note for me. I was almost crying in those scenes. There were some characters I never wanted to see dying, but they do. I would've never minded if they were unrealistically resurrected, but they aren't. It's not a spoiler at all. It made me realize how well Shyamalan wrote and directed those characters and how amazing the respective performances were, and how much I liked each of them. Also, I loved how Shyamalan used some of the deleted scenes from Unbreakable in this movie.
Mixed : We got to see a lot of Kevin's identities than in Split, but I think the less was more in this case. McAvoy did a great job, but many parts felt as a forced spot for some random character to pop out. Anya Taylor-Joy gives a great performance, but we don't buy what she does due to a poorer writing and underdeveloped emotional weights. She does her job very well to elevate the material, and I loved what she did. But in the end, it wasn't so believable. Honestly, I don't think she was needed in the film. And finally I admire Shyamalan's guts to send off the main characters in the way he did. But, the way they went off didn't do a proper justice to them. The same thing could've been done in a much better way.
Bad : The most frustrating part would be the arc given to David Dunn. It was the most poorly done part of the movie. In particular, the way they sent him off was the most frustrating part of the movie. I can accept the way how the others were sent off, but not him. He deserved a lot better than this. It felt as if Shyamalan wanted to do it properly, but couldn't because of the budget or studio interference. And the last two twists. The first one was something I have seen in some horror films, and I have started to feel that such an interpretation is the most blant thing to do. The second twist involves Mr. Glass. The twist gives a feel good moment, but since it involves Mr. Glass, the terrorist who killed a lot of people, it didn't feel right in the direction they went. Lastly, there are some plot hole type of stuff there. The way they decided to control Kevin's personalities could've been avoided if he would cover his eyes. The way they use water as a "kryptonite" for Dunn was stupid and totally different from the one done in Unbreakable. Mr. Glass' plan seem to work perfectly, but it feels as if he knew how every single thing would turn out in the end, which is impossible. Also, there are some comic book panels which show the exact stuff that happen in Split, and makes a little to no sense. There are shots which tend to establish a link between Casey and Dunn, but I don't know how that worked.
Conclusion : Only I know how much I wanted to give it an absolute 10/10 and an A+. Sadly, I cannot do it. I read somewhere that it was supposed to be a 3.5 hour long movie. I am really eager to watch the Director's cut. It doesn't feel like the exact movie Shyamalan planned to do. It feels like a really great movie trimmed down. Not choppy editing. I feel as if the ideas that were in this movie were not completely explored. As a Shyamalan movie, it is in my top 5. It's way better than some other films he gave us, earlier this decade. But still, Sixth Sense and Unbreakable remain the ultimate greats he has given.
Rating.
Score : 6.7/10
Grade : B+
(Only I know how bad I am feeling to assign these ratings to this movie)
Good : Shyamalan gives us a potentially great movie with some unforgivable flaws. The setting and the concept looks really incredible. Bruce Willis looked really good after a very long time. He cared for his role and was great as David Dunn. Naturally, James McAvoy gives an incredible performance as Kevin and the other personalities. Samuel Jackson kills it as Mr. Glass yet again. He is not in a role that we usually see him in, and he hasn't lost the touch in perhaps the most "against type" role he has ever done. The first act and how all the three lead characters are brought together is quite good. There are emotional scenes and deaths. All of them hit the perfect note for me. I was almost crying in those scenes. There were some characters I never wanted to see dying, but they do. I would've never minded if they were unrealistically resurrected, but they aren't. It's not a spoiler at all. It made me realize how well Shyamalan wrote and directed those characters and how amazing the respective performances were, and how much I liked each of them. Also, I loved how Shyamalan used some of the deleted scenes from Unbreakable in this movie.
Mixed : We got to see a lot of Kevin's identities than in Split, but I think the less was more in this case. McAvoy did a great job, but many parts felt as a forced spot for some random character to pop out. Anya Taylor-Joy gives a great performance, but we don't buy what she does due to a poorer writing and underdeveloped emotional weights. She does her job very well to elevate the material, and I loved what she did. But in the end, it wasn't so believable. Honestly, I don't think she was needed in the film. And finally I admire Shyamalan's guts to send off the main characters in the way he did. But, the way they went off didn't do a proper justice to them. The same thing could've been done in a much better way.
Bad : The most frustrating part would be the arc given to David Dunn. It was the most poorly done part of the movie. In particular, the way they sent him off was the most frustrating part of the movie. I can accept the way how the others were sent off, but not him. He deserved a lot better than this. It felt as if Shyamalan wanted to do it properly, but couldn't because of the budget or studio interference. And the last two twists. The first one was something I have seen in some horror films, and I have started to feel that such an interpretation is the most blant thing to do. The second twist involves Mr. Glass. The twist gives a feel good moment, but since it involves Mr. Glass, the terrorist who killed a lot of people, it didn't feel right in the direction they went. Lastly, there are some plot hole type of stuff there. The way they decided to control Kevin's personalities could've been avoided if he would cover his eyes. The way they use water as a "kryptonite" for Dunn was stupid and totally different from the one done in Unbreakable. Mr. Glass' plan seem to work perfectly, but it feels as if he knew how every single thing would turn out in the end, which is impossible. Also, there are some comic book panels which show the exact stuff that happen in Split, and makes a little to no sense. There are shots which tend to establish a link between Casey and Dunn, but I don't know how that worked.
Conclusion : Only I know how much I wanted to give it an absolute 10/10 and an A+. Sadly, I cannot do it. I read somewhere that it was supposed to be a 3.5 hour long movie. I am really eager to watch the Director's cut. It doesn't feel like the exact movie Shyamalan planned to do. It feels like a really great movie trimmed down. Not choppy editing. I feel as if the ideas that were in this movie were not completely explored. As a Shyamalan movie, it is in my top 5. It's way better than some other films he gave us, earlier this decade. But still, Sixth Sense and Unbreakable remain the ultimate greats he has given.
Rating.
Score : 6.7/10
Grade : B+
(Only I know how bad I am feeling to assign these ratings to this movie)