Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Format: DVD
Disk Features: (coming soon)
Starring: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Robin Wright Penn, Spencer Treat Clark
”This morning was the first morning that I can remember that I didn’t open my eyes and feel…sadness” ~ David Dunn
There was a time, back in high school, when I was a comic book junkie. I spent all of the money I earned working at Domino’s Pizza at the comic store in the mall. My love affair with comics and manga went on for years and I still wander into a shop every now and then. So, I’m always interested when a movie comes out that was either based on a comic book or draws a heavy influence from them. Unbreakable, while not derived directly from the pages of any Marvel or DC title, is about comic books and the heroes and villains that inhabit their pages.
David Dunn (Willis) can’t remember ever having been sick, broken a bone, or taken a day off due to illness. After he survives a catastrophic train wreck, unharmed, he finds a note on the windshield of his truck. The mysterious note leads him to the proprietor of a comic art gallery, Elijah Price (Jackson). Quite the opposite of Mr. Dunn, Mr. Price has suffered so many injuries due to his fragile bones that the children at school dubbed him “Mr. Glass.” In a very calm and matter of fact manner, Price explains to Dunn and his son that he feels comics have their roots in history. The way legends have been passed down through illustration in cultures all over the world, comic books may very well be a dramatic rendition of ancient truths. In a nutshell, Elijah Price thinks Mr. Dunn may very well be a superhero. As might be expected, Dunn thinks Price is a crackpot and ushers his son out of the building. But, due to the rather persistent insinuations of Elijah, Dunn starts to come around to the idea.
The camera work of Shyamalan in Unbreakable is clever and creative. In one of the earliest scenes, the conversation between Dunn and a young woman on the train is shot entirely from the perspective of a little girl, looking between the seats at them. Another scene is shot at a blank television screen, reflecting the characters. There are several scenes in the movie with unusual angles such as these and I hadn’t noticed the same technique in the director’s other films. During flashback scenes, he uses a monochrome lens; showing all but the main focus of the shot in dulled tones. While not completely original (Schindler's List uses it too), it’s still an effective method.
One of the things I notice most about Samuel L. Jackson’s acting is his talent with dialogue, most notably illustrated in Pulp Fiction. He delivers lines clearly, calmly and with just the right tone. The better directors seem to know how to utilize this skill when they give him the script. Unbreakable is no exception. Although Price is explaining a somewhat outlandish theory, it comes out sounding completely logical. Bruce Willis has worked with Shyamalan before, in The Sixth Sense. I think the two men work well together. I much rather enjoy seeing Willis in departures from the testosterone overload films like Die Hard. The actor who plays Dunn’s son, Spencer Treat Clark, does a really fantastic job. Even before he learns that his father may be the stuff of legend, it’s clear that he views the elder Dunn as a hero. In the last scene of the movie, he communicates the emotions of his character better than most child actors could. One of the characters I couldn’t help but feel for was Elijah’s mother, Charlayne Woodard. She’s a terribly strong woman and a great maternal figure.
While I have always been partial to Shyamalan’s films, Unbreakable has always seemed underappreciated to me. His take on the superhero genre is refreshing. Somehow, the whole movie is infused with a sort of eeriness. The first scene of the movie gives me chills each time I see it and sets a great tone for the rest of the story. Underlying the hero/villain story is the relationship between Dunn and his wife (Penn). There’s a sadness between them that makes the hero a bit more human. Shyamalan does a wonderful job of making the whole fantastic tale feel very real.
Overall Rating: 4
Hottie Rating: 3 (Willis is a loveable hero)
Alternate Viewing: Lady In The Water
Official Site: none found
IMDB Site
Pop Matters review *spoilers*
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