After a multitude of lackluster features, M. Night Shyamalan has returned to form with his most recent, more independent style foray, 2016’s Split – a horror/thriller with an unexpected. . . or should I say, an expected twist (could it be that there is no real twist?).
Featuring a tour de force performance from James McAvoy, the talented actor takes on the role of a plethora of very different personas, as his character has more than twenty split personalities. Ranging from a lisping young boy and grand British dame, to a fashion designer and Christopher Walken-like New Yorker, one of his splits, Dennis, kidnaps three teenaged girls, Claire (Haley Lu Richardson), Marcia (Jessica Sula), and Casey (Anya Taylor-Joy) from a public parking lot. Claire and Marcia are, for all intents and purposes, the popular girls in school – the type of gals that most cling to and the rest hate, while Casey is a lone wolf and outsider, her unusual ways forcing her to the periphery of the mainstream.
Placed in a stone-walled, locked room that hosts a spotless bathroom, Claire and Marcia are like fish out of water – nervous and panicked. The more introverted Casey looks inward, playing the long game as she tries to figure a way out of their more than taxing predicament. With two beds in the room, the popular pair cling to each other while Casey utilizes the other, another indicator of the strong divide and many differences between them.
The two times we leave the claustrophobic basement are when we journey with the man to his aging but utterly kind and helpful psychiatrist, Dr. Karen Fletcher (Betty Buckley), and by way of flashbacks to Casey’s childhood – where she is taught to hunt by her father and uncle (a shocking secret is revealed). It is her varied childhood experiences that spur the wide-eyed girl into playing the cat and mouse game with her kidnapper, as she attempts to gain a hold on one of the constantly revolving personalities.
After failed attempts to escape by the two damsels in distress, Dennis and his aiding alter ego Patricia separate the three girls, locking them in different rooms for some mysterious purpose. Will they be able to escape their unimaginable situation or will they fall prey to the unknown plans of the split personality?
Pulling from a variety of sources, Split feels like an amalgam of several works of Brian De Palma (Dressed to Kill and Raising Cain – which itself features John Lithgow playing a bevy of personalities), a touch of an Alfred Hitchcock thriller, with the flashbacks resembling Park Chan-wook’s 2013 psychological thriller Stoker, as well as flashes from early Shyamalan himself (his shots of the staircase are particularly similar to those in The Sixth Sense).
The motion picture also has a tinge of a comic book, feeling like 2000’s Unbreakable (and for good reason) combined with Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”. Much of the story would fall flat if it was not for McAvoy’s varied performance – he’s clearly having oodles of fun with his multitude of roles. Written with a playful flair, McAvoy perfectly encapsulates the lisping Hedwig’s babbling childlike ways; his constant use of the word “etcetera” is wholly entertaining, while each of his other selves have their own unique trademarks.
Framed in a beautiful and economical way, Shyamalan’s visual flair in Split is often breathtaking in its simplicity. Featuring perfectly composed shots that are not over-edited, faint zooms and pull backs subtly play with our emotions. It is actually surprising how alluring his shots are when the viewer reminds him or herself that most of it is filmed in an industrial-style basement. Taking a page out of his idol’s handbook, Shyamalan in many ways formulates his shots like Alfred Hitchcock. . . he even finds a spot for his requisite cameo (like The Master of Suspense always did). Sharp, playful camera work and tightly cropped shots of our leads show off both his prowess and restraint for the good of the story.
In many ways about dealing with the pains of childhood and working through them, there is great sorrow in more than one character within Shyamalan’s screenplay. Though we cannot condone the actions of McAvoy’s multiple personas, it is through his fractured soul that we can partially understand why he has become who he is. . . as with Casey herself. It is her past that makes her so different, a strong nonconformist who must work through her own demons as she escapes the beasts in her own psyche.
Leading us down a path towards a very obvious sequel (make sure to watch the scene after the finale to realize the quasi-twist), Split is a visual spectacle and a decently engaging dramatic horror/thriller. Though there are some issues with it, it does the job and succeeds, for the most part, drawing us into the narrative with its rich characters and solid performances. So, let’s raise a glass to Mr. Shyamalan for creating another beast of a film, here’s hoping that the sequel will continue the split from his run of less than engaging movies.