Split

One might say that M. Night Shyamalan is on a bit of a comeback. 

After one of the most astonishing career plummets Hollywood has ever seen, something that this generation might hold akin to if Christopher Nolan fell from all our good graces, Shyamalan seems to be taking his time to get back to the craft. 

His previous effort, The Visit, was a straightforward, yet very creepy thriller/horror that was thoughtful, kind of funny (a trademark of his), and also featured a decent, believable twist. I enjoyed it, for what it's worth, though it didn't stick with me long after the fact. 

Now comes his newest effort: Split. Somehow this one achieved a PG-13 rating but beside that, the trailers sell a thriller, this time with the catch that the antagonist has split personalities living within him. 23 of them to be exact. 

I've been intrigued ever since I first heard of this one because I knew, if anything, we'd at least get a great performance from James McAvoy out of it. That was pretty much guaranteed unless they completely butchered the script. I'll admit, a part of me also wanted to see if Shyamalan was back. Would Split be his triumphant return to form and give him arguably two films in a row to erase the aftertaste of his failed endeavors? 

The short answer is similar to what I gave after I saw The Visit: Split is not his grand re-entrance, but it is one of his best films in many, many years and he should be thankful that he had McAvoy along for the ride because he really sells it. 

The aspect of Split that falters the most significantly is the ending, by a mile. The entire length of the film, which is overly long by about 20 minutes at least, keeps and holds the mystery. It truly had me hooked and I wondered how it all tied together. I was contemplating when the other shoe was going to drop and the secret or his classic "twist" would be revealed. There really isn't a twist in Split, which I don't think ruins the film for anyone, nor is it the sole reason I'm harping on the ending. A film doesn't need a twist to succeed. A good ending should be coherent though, and Split's is just a mess. The pacing of the final 20 minutes is all over the place, editing degrades substantially, and some of the outcomes really led me to, quite frankly, just not give a damn anymore. You're waiting for something special to happen and, other than the very final frames (you'll definitely want to stay for those), there isn't much here to deviate from the norm. The same exact "norm" that the film had been doing such a phenomenal job up until then distancing itself from. So yeah, the ending bummed me out. There is one reason you should see this movie however:

I feel like a scene where Deadpool pops in to mock the fact that
Professor X is dressed like a woman would have been priceless...

"Wanna see me dance to Kanye West?"

James McAvoy's performance(s). I shouldn't discredit any of the other actresses or actors in the film -- they all do wonderful here for what's demanded of them. McAvoy really goes all in though and it's nothing short of captivating. At first I was worried that there wouldn't be much difference between the "split" characters. Maybe an accent here, a physical quirk there...but McAvoy really took the time to ensure that each character had a very distinctive feel and presence on screen. Often times you can tell who's "in the light", as they say, just by the look on his face. These characters are wide swings too. Everything from gender, to age, to accent, to posture is affected by the shifts and it's incredible and fun, if not completely creepy, to watch. My personal favorite, as I'm sure will be everyone else, was Hedwig. Seeing McAvoy embody a fairly dim 12 year old boy with a lisp and talk about his dancing skills is equal parts hilarious and unsettling and Hedwig definitely serves as the "comedic relief" from the more serious and mature subject matter. Which again I should wonder, how on earth did this get away with a PG-13 rating?

I also was pretty interested in the overall subject matter of the film. Keep in mind that this interest is totally based on science presented in the movie. I'm not familiar with split-personality disorder in the slightest so, if my research suggests that all the stories or research of the film are just for show, I'll be a bit bummed. Long story short, the analysis of people with this disorder plays a predominant role in the film as his therapist is one of the main characters. I found this interaction to be captivating as well, both because of McAvoy's experience again but also because of the still-pending-my-research-to-confirm "science" behind it. 

"How did Professor X get out of his wheelchair!?!"

Split is a film that I think had so much potential to truly be that film that would have signified: Shyamalan is back! For most of its run time, it suggests as much. Unfortunately the ending and overall outcome of the film is so flawed that it instead holds him back from that greatness, despite having a brilliant McAvoy along for the ride. The point to be taking from this closing paragraph though is that there are moments of greatness. Most of the film is great. And that is definitely something to get excited about.

CONS:

• I would have liked to see more of the different personalities on a regular basis. Only four are truly highlighted
• Too long by at least 20 minutes
• The ending is a mess in more ways than one. Very odd pacing shifts, poor editing, and it doesn't feel all that cohesive
• Final outcomes of the film/character are poorly thought out

PROS:

• McAvoy's performance is worth the price of admission alone in my opinion. It's supremely creepy, but also funny, intense, and thoughtfully deliberate
• Starts off strong and builds upon itself well. There is a grand sense of mystery and "what's really going on here?" throughout most of it
• Solid imagery
• Good, if slightly underused, elements of the original score
• Interesting subject matter makes it all the more terrifying

Rath's Review Score | 7/10