Glass

M. Night Shyamalan pulled a fast one on me, and audiences in general, in January 2017 with his film Split. I went into it expecting to see a thriller starring James McAvoy about a guy with Dissociative Identity Disorder. I suppose the secret is out now, so I can say what I did not expect was for the film in it's closing moments to reveal itself to in fact be a sequel to M. Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable. I was so caught off guard, I vividly remember sitting in the theater and exclaiming (a little louder than I would've liked), "No fucking way!" Night had long teased us that he had two follow-ups to Unbreakable in mind, but so much time had passed, I figured we'd never see them. Now, a little more than 18 years after the original film, comes the concluding chapter with Glass.  

Picking up roughly three weeks after the previous film, David Dunn (played by Bruce Willis) is working at his security business with his now grown son, Joseph (played by Spencer Treat Clarke). The business is largely a cover for David's continued efforts as a crime fighting vigilante, wearing a large rain slicker and hood in place of the traditional cape with Joseph as his "guy in the chair". They are on the hunt for the one known as The Hoarde (played by James McAvoy), a man with Dissociative Identity Disorder and wanted for the murder and kidnapping of a number of teenage girls including the kidnapping and attempted murder of Casey Cooke (played by Ana Taylor-Joy). Joseph has an idea where The Horde may be hiding and sure enough he's right as David winds up finding him as well as the latest batch of girls The Horde was holding prisoner. Taking down The Horde doesn't go quite as planned as they are interrupted by the police and both wind up in psychiatric care under Dr. Ellie Staple (played by Sarah Paulson). Joining them is another patient of the hospital, Elijah Price (played by Samuel L. Jackson), otherwise known as Mr. Glass. David is understandably resistant to this as the idea of introducing the brilliant but psychopathic Mr. Glass to the just plain insane The Horde has disaster written all over it. David is left with trying to figure a way out of this situation, preferably before the other two break out, something that is a matter of when rather than if.  

M. Night Shyamalan picks up more or less where he left off with the prior film as he seamlessly re-integrates the characters from Unbreakable with the characters we met in Split. This film is a smaller and more introspective film than an audience accustomed to Marvel sized-super-heroics might expect, but it's important to remember the type of movie Unbreakable was when going into this movie. Shyamalan keeps things far more grounded and closer to reality than the high flying superhero fantasy we've grown accustomed to over the past 18 years. Within this, Shyamalan crafts a surprisingly satisfying conclusion to his Superhero trilogy even if it's not quite in the way I expected him to. Night has long enjoyed playing with conventions and the film definitely did not play out quite the way I thought it would. Still, I was able to appreciate how he toyed with those expectations and gave us a satisfying ending. At least I thought so, I can imagine some people may struggle with it so it will be interesting to see how it plays out with a general audience. 

The performances in the film are top notch. Bruce Willis gave one of his best performances in Unbreakable and it was nice to see him return to the character of David Dunn. Again, he is able to convey so much with his character with so little. James McAvoy continues to impress playing a character with 23 distinct personalities. It was an impressive feat in Split and even more so here as he switches personalities on a dime as each one fights for dominance or "time in the light" as they refer to it. It's a stunning performance and a stand out in the film. Then there is the mastermind, Samuel L. Jackson as Mr. Glass. He just dominates every scene he is in and makes his character so compelling and impressive. You really get a sense that his mind is always working ans Jackson conveys that so well. It's also the first time we really get to see him in full-on super villain mode and Jackson is just having a ball with it. Sarah Paulson is the newcomer to this dynamic as the three men's therapist, one who specializes in a specific form of delusion of grandeur, helping people who are convinced they are superhuman. Of course, we as the audience know she's wrong and it's only a matter of time until she discovers it, but Paulson does give the character the conviction and presence that it's believable when David begins to doubt himself and what he can do because of her therapies. Returning from their respective previous films are Spencer Treat Clarke, Charlayne Woodard (playing Mr. Glass' mother), and Ana Taylor-Joy from Unbreakable and Split and all three are great to see back for the final film as their storylines converge as we get closer to the conclusion.

It will be interesting to see what audiences make of this film after the market has been so saturated with comic book blockbusters (as opposed to 2000, when Unbreakable came out and comic book movies were thought to be unprofitable). Compared to those, Glass is a small indie movie. Yet, it accomplishes more with it's characters and it's grounded plotting that I found it a welcome relief from all the overblown CGI and special effects. Not to say that I don't enjoy those movies too because I do when they're done right. But this movie is different from that. It's more concerned with it's characters and what the real world would be like if there really were superheroes. I had the unique privilege to see this in a marathon screening alongside Unbreakable and Split and I have to say that is the ideal way to view this film. Watch the first two films first and then go see Glass. As the concluding chapter to a trilogy started a little over 18 years ago, it brings things to a satisfying conclusion.   

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch

As someone who was raised on the likes of The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits, I took to Black Mirror, their natural 21st century successor, fairly quickly. The newest addition to the series, a feature length interactive movie, is one of the most exciting yet. While it doesn't quite reach the heights of the best of Black Mirror (you know, the ones that make you want to throw out your computer right after watching it), it is a bold and exciting experiment in itself.  

Stefan Parker (played by Fionn Whitehead) is a troubled young video programmer living in 1984 era London whose ambition is to create a video game based on his favorite book, a Choose Your Own Adventure style fantasy novel called Bandersnatch. He's created a revolutionary style of gaming for it, and has a meeting with a video game company headed by famed designer Colin Ritman (played by Will Poulter) and Mohan Thikur (played by Asmin Chaudry) to pitch the game. Colin is surprised that Stefan decided to adapt the novel since it's writer went insane and killed his wife after writing it. Nonetheless, they are impressed with his design thus far and agree to a partnership with Stefan designing the game, with the provision that it's finished and available for Christmas. Stefan lives with his father, Peter (played by Craig Parkinson) and makes regular visits to a psychiatrist, Dr. Haynes (played by Alice Lowe). However, the more he works on the game, the more he finds his grip on reality loosening as he becomes increasingly convinced he is no longer in control of his own decision making. 

Charlie Brooker was tasked by Netflix to try and create an interactive episode of his famed anthology series, Black Mirror, and intrigued by the possibilities agreed. From a technological perspective, the episode is a smashing success. The interactive film moves seamlessly from scene to scene as the decisions are made as to what direction the story should go into or what Stefan should do from two separate choices. They start off simple, with such mundane choices as whether he should have Sugar Puffs or Frosted Flakes for Breakfast or listen to the Thompson Twins or a Compilation Tape on the way to the meeting (with the soundtrack changing to match each choice). As the story goes on, the choices get decidedly darker and/or weirder as it goes on, with one option that obliterates the fourth wall in a way I've never quite seen before. Of course, the entire set up of the story plays around with the fourth wall as the main character Stefan becomes increasingly aware of his lack of control over his own actions. Where Bandersnatch stumbles is in the story it is telling within this new interactive format. While it is clever and at times very surprising, there isn't a lot of payoff to the story itself in any of the possible endings. Especially when compared to the best of Black Mirror, it falls a bit flat. Still, I appreciated the way this whole thing was put together as it allows the viewer to go back and try again if they run into a dead end in the narrative or a lame ending. I also appreciated that at certain points when you go back to redo a scene to make a different choice, it's not the exact clip, but rather Stefan specifically acknowledging that he's done that scene before.

The cast assembled for this is quite good, lead by Fionn Whitehead as Stefan. His does a great job capturing his character's inner turmoil (stemming from his mother's death when he was young and the blame he assigns himself for it) and confusion as the story goes on, but also equally captures the humor and fun of the far sillier options that are available (you'll know it when you find it). Will Poulter has an interesting turn as Colin, who in one story branch becomes something of a mentor to Stefan in a session at Colin's apartment that includes smoking a spliff and experimenting with hallucinogens. Poulter makes Colin a unique character, who is a more accomplished game designer and someone who Stefan looks up to. He takes Colin's very blunt and straightforward personality and makes him and an engaging and intriguing character. It's easy to see how Stefan would be drawn to someone with such strong confidence. Alice Lowe has a nice turn as Dr. Haynes and gives her character a lot of warmth and care (except, again, for the joke endings). Craig Parkinson has the trickier role as Stefan's father, but still manages to make the character sympathetic, even if he tends to lash out in frustration at Stefan, as a viewer I at least could understand where it was coming from. He wants to help his son get better and find a way to live on his own, even if he's not sure how to do it.      

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch is a fun experiment in a new form of filmmaking, blending film and video game together for an all together unique experience. It's beautifully shot throughout and has some top notch acting, especially from lead Fionn Whitehead. While some of the tangents are riotously entertaining and spectacularly weird, at the end none of the endings (there's five main endings total) really pull all the wild ideas thrown around about fate, destiny and how much control we really have over our lives into a cohesive whole. It's an interesting format and fun to play around with but at the same time I just wish they had stuck the landing a bit better and made sure each tangent had a satisfying and memorable ending. As it is, it's still worth checking out if you're interested, but you might be a bit let down at the end.