Unbreakable Review
by "Robin Clifford" (rclifford AT teloquent DOT com)November 30th, 2000
"Unbreakable"
David Dunn (Bruce Willis) is on a commuter train heading home for Philadelphia after a none-too-successful security job interview in New York City. He flirts with and is rejected by a pretty young woman and sinks into his own doldrums. Just before arriving in Philly, the train goes out of control, jumps the track and all 131 passengers and crew are killed - except for David, who survives the wreck with nary a scratch. A mysterious, handicapped man, Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), who tells David that he is a very special person, a man who may be invincible, soon approaches him. The bemused David begins to delve into his apparent indestructibility and makes some shocking discoveries in director/writer M. Night Shyamalan's "Unbreakable."
Helmer Shyamalan faces a tough battle with his follow up to the incredibly successful sophomore effort, "The Sixth Sense." (That film was the second largest grossing film in 1999, overshadowed only by "The Phantom Menace.") The director/writer wasted no time in creating a new mystery thriller that invites the viewer to pay close attention to the details of the story while still delivering a finale with a revelation that shocks. But, please, don't expect the stunning, unexpected ending of "The Sixth Sense." Shyamalan's follow on film effectively avoids a slump by weaving a different mystical tale.
David has survived the horrors of the train wreck with absolutely no damage to his body, but his mind is another thing. There is a part of David that he has never come to grips with and it has impacted his life in negative ways, including a failing marriage to Audrey (Robin Wright Pen). His only ray of hope is his son, Joseph (Spencer Treat Clark), who idolizes his dad. One day soon after the crash, David finds a note on his car that asks the question, "How many days have you been sick?" There is nothing else except for a company logo on the card. Dunn tracks down the company to find a very strange individual as the owner.
Elijah has suffered a lifelong affliction, osteogenesis imperfecta; a debilitating disease that makes his bones as frail as twigs. He has lived a careful, reclusive life and still suffered 54 breaks of his bones since he was a child. Elijah became, as a boy, with his mother's (Charlayne Woodard) help, an aficionado of action comic books and has delved into duality inherent in the hero/villain themes of the genre. He built a business based on the art of his beloved comic books and became obsessed with finding his dual, his opposite, in life. Elijah's thinking is that there must be someone to counter his own breakability. Is David the man he seeks?
Other heinous disasters have also taken place, recently, besides David's train wreck. Of the three life-snuffing accidents, David is the only one to survive - without a mark on him. Elijah makes David think back over his life and those things that may have harmed him. As Dunn digs into his past, he finds that events did not really play as they seemed and that his childhood "injuries" never happened. His is, truly, unbreakable. The question now becomes, what is David's purpose on Earth? The fragile Elijah, whose bones quite literally can break like glass, shows David that he has the ability to "see" wrongdoers and their deeds. This newfound "sight" gives David the chance to save a couple of children from a brutal death, proving to his son that he is a hero. Is he Elijah's comic book hero?
I won't talk anymore about the story so I don't give anything away. This is a mystery story and the viewer should be allowed the chance to figure it out. The good news is, though not as shocking a work as "The Sixth Sense," "Unbreakable" is an intelligent, well-executed mystical tale. Prepare yourself for rampant symbolism (and, unfortunately, at least one, extended product placement that I found annoying). The two-sides-of-the-same-coin relationship between David and Elijah also has elements of student and master. David is the bewildered, invulnerable hero figure to Elijah's flawed, but brilliant, advisor. But, yes, there is more. The comic book art as a binding device is interesting, especially for action comic fans, but it left me cold. I think an understanding of the graphic novel art form, as the director obviously has, will make you appreciate the film's intent a little more.
Technically, "Unbreakable" is solid. Photography by Eduardo Serra is key to the look of the film, capturing the moody, off-kilter, otherworldliness that Shyamalan strives to create. Production designer Larry Fulton, who did such subtle work on "The Sixth Sense," gets a chance at a more stylized locale in the world of Elijah Price. The starkly contrasted chrome-and-glass look combines beautifully with the costuming, from another Shyamalan collaborator, Joanna Johnston. (See Laura's review at www.reelingreviews.com/unbreakable.htm for a unique perspective on the film's costume/makeup.) The film carries a vaguely sinister look throughout that helps keep the story intact.
Screenwriter Shyamalan needs to get out more. His script is intelligent, yes, but also self-indulgent. He is having fun with the mystery, the look and the colors of the film and the film abounds with little in-jokes that the observant viewer will see and enjoy. He is an honest writer that does not go for the cheap shot to titillate the audience. I would like to see the helmer work with other filmmakers and spread his creative wings more.
Unfortunately for the actors, this is a story-intensive flick that requires the filmgoer to pay attention to the plot threads. As such, the thespians are required to live within their characters rather than develop them. Willis is conflicted as David Dunn and works hard to understand his real gift, though there is little emotion allowed to bubble through - except in one scene where Joseph tests David's new-found and incredible body strength. Samuel L. Jackson always brings his all, but, even he is overshadowed by the Gumby-hairdo and slick costume of Elijah. Clark does fine as the incredulous son, Joseph. He and Willis play well with each other, though the boy is not a Haley Joel Osment. Robin Wright Penn, as David's troubled wife Audrey, does well in the tough role of understanding wife.
"Unbreakable" should have a ready-made audience and do well at the box-office as the only "serious" film out right now. It will draw an after life on video and DVD for the fans who want to pick it apart and look for all the little nuances in the story. Enjoy the show. I give it a B.
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