Why is Unbreakable such a good (or bad) movie? (1 Viewer)

[DonRoeber]

I enjoy it more than the Sixth Sense, because I find it a bit more rewatchable.

 

[Stephen B]

it is one of the best superhero movies ever. its real, dramatic and really well acted, willis really has come along way acting wise, i believe this is his best effort yet. but please, dont go in expecting x-men or superman. its a drama, not an action film.

 

[Patrick Sun]

(Spoiler below!)

Loved it. The movie was the about the journey of self-realization of David finally coming to grips with his extra-ordinary abilities, and choosing to do good with them. But just because David has these abilities, it doesn't mean he's mentally equipped to handle Elijah's revelation of the monstrous lengths he went to to find "him/David" In a "fight or flight" situation, David showed that he was still human in spite of his powers, and choose flight, calmed down, and had the authorities handle the situation.

Mainly it's the ending that polarizes audiences. Some people just can't get over the "captions" that explain the resolution of that particular development. For me, the film was done, there was no need to show all that other stuff when a few well-worded captions would do the trick.

I really enjoyed the care that Shyamalan took in translating many shots of classic comic book hero "poses/panels" as he build his story up. The psyche of a "super-hero" is a rather fragile thing when translated into a "real life" reality. Shyamalan was able to move the viewer from a 2-D world into a 3-D world with many more nuances/issues that could crop up with "reluctant" super-heroes.

 

[Mike Broadman]

Unbreakable, like the Sixth Sense and, to a lesser degree, Memento, hinge upon the Big Surprise Ending that's supposed to shock us. With Sixth Sense, I knew something was up, but didn't guess the big surprise completely, so it was kind of cool. With Unbreakable, however, I knew the ending half-way through.

It's very gimmicky, and the gimmick fails for me. Then there's the idea that the guy has superpowers but doesn't realise it until some nutjob in a purple suit tells him.

 

[Terrell]

He doesn't have superpowers in the sense that he would recognize them. His power is very subtle. Not like flying and x-ray vision.

 

[Paul Mason]

He doesn't have superpowers in the sense that he would recognize them. His power is very subtle. Not like flying and x-ray vision.

That's the film's biggest problem in a way - the story would have had bigger impact if his powers were less subtle, but then you'd lose the element of uncertainty about whether he really had powers or not.

So it's a balancing act and they got it about right.

Also about the ending - maybe we saw a different version in Europe but I don't remember any captions?

 

[Jack Briggs]

Though I screened my copy of the DVD just once, I couldn't fathom this film's appeal. I was so apathetic about it I never bothered to pop the second disc full of supplements into the player. I just didn't care.

The transfer is superb, though.

Maybe I'll give this one another try sometime in the near future.

 

[TheoGB]

Paul, the movie definitely ended with some text on the screen wrapping it all up in the preview I saw on Shaftesbury Ave. I think it looked shoddy as far as an ending goes, but there you go.

 

[Patrick Sun]

There are plenty of films that had a bunch of text "wrapping up the movie". Black Hawk Down is a recent example of this form of story-telling. Did the audience feel cheated that they didn't get to see that part of the story? I just don't understand the double standard (of films they like vs. don't like) when people bring up the objections to the text at the end of films.

Besides being born with super dense bones and tissue, David's other super-power was being able to see flashes of evil commited by people, something like a Spidey-sense, but it worked by tactile contact with people and it was for events in the past, so he's a bit psychic as well.

These are powers that don't call attention to you, and could easily be present in the "real" world unbeknowst to the person until someone shows them the truth about their extraordinary abilities.

I have to admit, being a life-long comic book reader, this film brings to life how a real-life 'super-hero' might materialize and function in our world.

The film touches on the issues of depression when such a person choeses to close himself off from being his true self all for the love of a woman. Once David discovers the truth of his gifts, his mental state becomes less depressed, and has to faced the responsibility of using his gifts for his internal proclivities, which is to be a protector of sorts.

But there's no point in trying to dictate taste in films. If a person hates the movie, they hate the movie. But if someone asks me why I love or hate a film, I do try to cite examples, rather than just give a thumbs up or down gesture.

 

[Chauncey_G]

Another vote for really enjoying Unbreakable. I didn't feel this way immediately, though. After I watched it the first time, I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. As time went on, I found myself thinking more and more about it and found myself really wanting to see it again. Upon subsequent viewings, my appreciation for it grew quite a bit. I think it is an intelligent and mature treatment of a genre (comic books) that is largely seen as being just the opposite. Very thought provoking (all the debate on the movie should prove that!).
I didn't mind the end captions; I actually thought they were a nice touch. I think one's view on this might be influenced by one's involvement in the world of comic books. I used to collect, but it got too expensive (so I got into Home Theater? What kind of sense does THAT make? ). The point is, when the captions came up I immediately recognized the comic book necessity of them. When Batman defeats a villan, they seem to always end up in Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane, though you never really spend a lot of time actually watching Bats haul them to the Asylum, sign them over, give a statement as to what happened, etc. etc.. From a dramatic standpoint, it'd be a little dull. From a genre (comic book) standpoint, that's just not how it's done.
All in all an excellent film, IMO.

 

[Neil Joseph]

Without posting any spoilers, I hated it because it was too slow and I had to wait all that time to get to the end and see such a stupid ending.

 

[TheLongshot]

There are two issues that people seem to have with the film.

1. The verrry slow pace

2. The ending, which is very abrupt and in some ways unsatisfying.

Basically, after a lot of waiting, you get the twist ending and then immediatly the text ending the movie. Most people have a problem with this, including Night, who from all reports was working on it, but this is the best he could do, so he stuck with it.

Mostly, tho, I don't think the movie hangs on its ending, like The Sixth Sense does. The movie was a postmodern superhero origin story, which worked quite well. He could have tightened it up slightly and maybe found a better ending for it, but I thought it was pretty darn good.

Jason

 

[Bill J]

Unbreakable may be the second worst movie I've ever seen. You should probably rent it first, then decide.

 

[DaveF]

I enjoyed Unbreakable a lot. As Scott W. said, it's not perfect, not great, but very good. And though I'm not a comics-collector, I've read enough of the good stuff to have developed an interest in superhero deconstruction: I'm fascinated by the merger of superheros with real life. And Unbreakable did that. It also contained aspects of the notion that old mythologies contain bits of truth, perhaps long forgotten (something I first found reading C.S. Lewis).

So, thematically, Unbreakable really works for me.

Unbreakable, like the Sixth Sense and, to a lesser degree, Memento, hinge upon the Big Surprise Ending that's supposed to shock us.

I disagree with this. For me, this movie is about the process, not the resolution.

It seems to be a movie that either you like or you don't. I've not seen many ambivalent reactions to it.

 

[Ron-P]

An excellent film. I also enjoyed it much more than The Six Sense. A very well done movie.
Peace Out~

 

[Tom-G]

I enjoyed Unbreakable much more than the overrated Sixth Sense. If you enjoy reading comic books, you will especially enjoy Unbreakable. The dialogue is a somewhat stilted, as M. Knight has shown in the aforementioned and also The Sixth Sense, but the story of a man trying to find his superpowers (if they indeed are present) is done quite well here.

Why not rent it first to see if you like it and then decide if you want to buy it?

 

[Jerry AZ]

6ht sense and unbreakable. one word. MARVELLOUS!

I saw both and had the exact opposite reaction from above. I thought Bruce Willis acted like he was on sedatives through both films.

 

[Justin1]

Unbreakable was a terrific movie.

The reason it shines is because it does the whole "super-hero" story from a completely different aspect. Most super hero movies of the last ten years follow the Batman mold. A little background on super hero and villian, the villian's plan unfolds, the city is held hostage, Hero must overcome evil to win. Well, while that's fine and dandy, after about 10 go arounds, this story line gets tiring. Instead of following this, M. Night focused just on the Background section. Flushing out exactly how someone would begin to realize and come to grips with super human abilities is extremely interesting and intriguing. This is one aspect that I myself and others think about when you see "super-hero" movies. Imagine waking up tomorrow and realize you can never get sick and never get hurt (in the traditional sense). You don't just go out and fight crime like some melodramatic movie role. At first, you obviously deny your ability. If you so desire, you can come to fully realize your potential. Unbreakable showed how David slowly develops his gift and begins to realize what he is capable of. But it takes guidance from others to keep David from becoming completely ignorant of his abilities.

The ending is not shocking in the sense that you find out his friend is actually his enemy, no, the shocking part is finding out you just witnessed a prequel, in a sense. The traintracks led right up to a predictable ending but you find out you actually watched the birth of a superhero, not just another mindless saga in "Super-Hero" movies 101. It was refreshing to see someone finally bring a good super hero film to the screen, especially one you don't realize is breaking the mold until the very end. Upon repeated viewings you will begin to notice the slow and deliberate Good vs. Evil cinematography that M. Night used during the movie. It's absolutely brilliant.

 

[Josh_Hill]

I LOVE this film. Its one of the best Superhero films ever. $15 at Walmart too.

 

[Josh_Hill]

Unbreakable is a masterpiece and I love it. The music is fantastic as well.