In “The Happening,” writer director M. Night Shyamalan has come up with an interesting premise. Too bad he doesn’t know how to develop it other than devise gruesome ways for people to commit suicide. Something ominous is happening in Central Park, causing people to become disoriented and kill themselves. An airborne toxin quickly spreads throughout New York and then expands through much of the Northeast. Theories about the cause abound, from terrorist attacks to a virus to the negative effects of nuclear power. Caught in a mass exodus of Philadelphia is Elliot, a high school science teacher (Mark Wahlberg), his wife Alma (Zooey Deschanel), Elliot’s best friend, Julian (John Leguizamo); and Julian's young daughter, Jess (Ashlyn Sanchez). They escape by train only to find themselves stranded in rural eastern Pennsylvania. There, Elliot and his small group must find a safe place to hide.
Shyamalan develops his concept of nature as menace through contrivances, not through natural outcomes of a solid plot. Because Elliot, Alma, and Jess just happen to find a ride with a man who believes that plants communicate with each other, Elliot postulates that Mother Nature is fighting back and that the wind is spreading the deadly toxin. Are we to believe that he stumbles onto the cause of ‘the happening’ after one random conversation? And then there’s a ridiculous marital problem that’s bothering Alma. It’s so silly that it easily results in thinking Alma is silly. And Zooey Deschanel’s frequent wide-eyed-deer-caught-in-the-headlights expression doesn’t help. In order for “The Happening” to work, you need a first-rate plot, strong characters, and a meaningful message. Instead you get barely enough story for a 30-minute “Twilight Zone” episode, overwrought characters that you really don’t care about and a vague message about messing with Mother Nature. "The Happening" is no "Sixth Sense." (6/14/08)
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