REVIEW: M. Night Shyamalan’s new film The Visit sets him on the right path to return to his early form of thrilling and surprising audiences of all kinds.
By Franklin Racobs, Staff Writer
Director M. Night Shyamalan’s recent film, The Visit, is a found-footage horror film that was made on the relatively small budget of five million dollars. Shyamalan’s career started on a high note, with his first hit film, The Sixth Sense, a critical and commercial success. This film’s thrills and clever twist kicked off Shyamalan’s career, but after the success of his first three films, his career took a turn for the worst when he began writing and directing huge flops like The Last Airbender and After Earth. Shyamalan’s new film shouldn’t be seen as a comeback, but it does show that he is back on track.
The Visit opens with 15-year-old Becca (Olivia DeJonge) and her 13-year-old brother Tyler (Ed Oxenbould) leaving to visit their Nana (Deanna Dunagan) and Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie), who live in a secluded farmhouse in Pennsylvania. Pop Pop gives specific instructions to both Becca and Tyler to not leave their room after 9:30 pm, but Becca, wanting to capture as much of her experience as possible for her documentary, promptly ignores the rule. Things get weird very quickly: the first thing Becca catches on camera is Nana walking in and out of the frame, projectile vomiting all over the base of the stairs. Shyamalan uses this form of macabre humor throughout the film to suggest that Nana and Pop Pop only appear this creepy because of their age.
Shyamalan is a director known for his twists in the climax of his films, but the main problem with The Visit is that the twist can be seen at the very beginning if you simply focus on the context and plot details. This doesn’t mean that the twist lacks suspense, however, because it is definitely thrilling to watch the finale unfold.
No doubt, the best part about The Visit is how much fun you’ll have with it, however cheesy the movie can be. It is a movie with the classic horror scares made famous by home videos, but instead of demons or monsters scaring you, the elderly take their place. Although Tyler’s hobby of freestyle rap maintains a slight comical atmosphere throughout the movie, you can also have some laughs over some of the scares themselves at the beginning of the film.
Shyamalan executes the progression of horror very well in the movie, as the viewer begins to realize that Nana and Pop Pop aren’t just old anymore. The thrills lose their subtle comedic tones and eventually makes the climax of the film very entertaining.
Unlike most horror movies, The Visit closes with a scene that may bring joyful tears to some and a life lesson to all, and that, I will leave for your discovery. The Visit is a film that delivers more than most found-footage films and conveys M. Night Shyamalan’s return to the arena of respectable and enjoyable films, a relief for us all.