M. Night Shyamalan’s latest film, Trap, is clean, clever and slightly misguided but has heart.
As a director, M. Night Shyamalan has always been a subject of contention, with some loving his utter insanity and clever twists, whilst others hating the superficialness of his scripts. I fall somewhere in the middle and can acknowledge where the stupid outweighs the cheese and vice versa. I am glad to say Trap is a great balance of the two.
Trap, Shyamalan’s 16th feature film, follows father Cooper (Josh Hartnett) and daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) as they attend the concert of singer Lady Raven (Saleka). Increased police activity at the concert worries Cooper and upon investigation, he finds that he lies in the centre of a trap… for himself.
The movie utilises Shyamalan’s auteur style as well as some inspired cinematography from DP Sayombhu Mukdeeprom to create an intense but also laid-back environment that the script capitalises on with great usage of the film’s setting. I was particularly intrigued, and honestly invested, in the way the movie was shot, with the camera never getting closer than Cooper’s character to any given place, making the experience feel all the more personal.
Shots are also framed symmetrically, amplifying that clean and controlled feeling, symbolic of Cooper’s cleverness and control of the situation, but also the control the antagonising police officers have over the venue. As a character, Hartnett’s Cooper is cool, calm and collected, but also in a panic with some underlying issues.
It makes him a dangerous man, but the movie maintains a perspective that in my opinion favours Cooper. Which is alright, but for the story they want to tell and how it unfolds, the perspective fails to make me feel for other characters as much as I do for him.
As I alluded to earlier, the script is a tad superficial, especially in the first act which is forced to exposit information to both Cooper and the audience. It’s an understandable flaw, and one that I don’t hold against the movie, especially when Hartnett’s performance captures that superficiality and flips it onto its head, making it hilarious to watch.
There’s an element within this film that has to do with childhood, and there are a few characters that are tied to it. It’s relevant for the whole film but only directly acknowledged a few times, making that factor feel underbaked.
Trap is a great film that manages to balance the cheesiness of its concept and script, transforming it into a clean and clever thriller. It’s elevated by an amazing performance from Josh Hartnett and some strong direction and cinematography. Shyamalan proves he still has it, and I for one, certainly look forward to his next film.
Trap stars Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka, Hayley Mills, Jonathan Langdon, Alison Pill and Kid Cudi. The film was directed and written by M. Night Shyamalan and is now in theatres worldwide courtesy of distribution by Warner Bros. Pictures.
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