A Trip to the Beach?

This weekend, I went to see M. Night Shyamalan's newest movie, Old. I wasn't sure I wanted to, and had maybe even decided "no" when a friend suggested it. But going out to movies again still seems novel enough to chance something that seems a little wishy-washy.

Old is adapted from a French graphic novel about a mysterious beach where the people can't escape and are aging at an incredibly accelerated rate. Mystery-thriller ensues. And, just as it seemed: it's a little wishy-washy. Old is both very compelling and incredibly hokey -- occasionally even at the same time.

The are two major issues here. One is tone. Shyamalan remains determined to be the Alfred Hitchcock of his generation, and films every one of his movies with a stylish camera and tricks to build tension. Often, it works. (In this movie too.) But something about the premise of this movie feels equal parts science fiction as thriller. It's the Twilight Zone, not Alfred Hitchcock Presents. And early on, those two genres within the film compete against each other in an awkward way.

The second, larger issue is character. The characters in this movie are about as shallow as they can get. Most have only as much personality as needed to service the plot. The dialogue is wooden and functional. The lines that are meant to flesh them out are some of the most stilted and awkward of all. The actors are basically given nothing to work with, and even though you may have seen some of them be good in other movies, you're not going to see that here. The mountain is simply too steep to climb.

But, assuming that you can get over hump into the back half of the movie, that first issue at least does resolve itself. The horror-thriller moments of the movie really do start to work with great consistency. There are a lot of clever ideas in this film. Some might say there are so many as to be gimmicky, but it does work to tee up one solid scene premise after another, like an improv troupe that's getting nothing but A+ suggestions from the audience. The movie serves up many a gruesome image, touches on most of the things that would be truly terrifying about this wild situation, and manages to gesture at sweet and tender in moments too. Considering what you have to wait through to get there, though? Yeah, this movie is quite a mixed bag.

One thing I will go to the mat and defend, though, is the ending. There's a lot of talk online about M. Night Shyamalan's latest Twist Ending. It seems to me that when it comes to Shyamalan, everyone has forgotten how movies work. If a mystery is built into the core premise of a story and is explicitly set in front of the audience, then answering that question is not a Twist Ending -- it's an Ending. You didn't see it coming? Still not a twist. The movie directly raises a question, and then answers that question in the final minutes. That's context. And in my view, it's one of the better parts of this movie. It's not impervious to a hunt for plot holes, but I found it a satisfying justification for Why We've Just Seen What We've Just Seen.

Still, I'm not going to recommend Old. A "recommendation" would imply either (or both) that I think most people will like it, or that I think it will win over the skeptical. I don't think either. I'd call it a C+. If, like me, you hear about the movie and think... "well..... maaaaybe?" Then, well, maaaaybe you'll find something to like about it. You're also probably not missing out to skip it.