Suspenseful horror movies are back with M. Night Shyamalan’s “Trap.”
“Trap” is a PG-13 horror and mystery movie released August 2.
Director M. Night Shyamalan is famous for his spooky works, including “The Village,” “Signs,” “The Sixth Sense,” “Unbreakable,” “The Happening,” “The Visit,” “Lady in the Water,” “Split,” “Old,” “Glass,” and “Knock at the Cabin.” His style includes suspenseful music during key moments and disarming close-up shots on character’s faces when they are talking or expressing an important emotion.
His films sometimes move along slowly, and subtle points are part of his directing magic. No one can unsee the color red in “The Sixth Sense” once they become aware of it. The director generally plays a character in his films., which typically take place in Philadelphia his home town. Most importantly, his films have mysterious twists that keep audiences guessing.
“Trap” is no exception to Shyamalan’s style of filmmaking. On the surface, the movie is about a father, Cooper, taking his daughter, Riley, to see a concert of a singer called Lady Raven. The trailer of the movie shows that the concert is a trap for a serial killer called The Butcher. In true M. Night Shyamalan fashion, the movie takes the viewers through several twists and turns where it is key to pay attention to the little details. I was laughing by the end of the film because the little details and actions the main character could get away with were so impressive. By the end of the film, I could see that every moment played an important part in the film.
Without spoiling the plot, “Trap” had several traits of a typical M. Night Shyamalan film. First, the movie takes place in Philadelphia. Second, red is used in the lighting for certain concert scenes. Third, there is specific music highlighting certain points of the film, in addition to the concert music. Cooper’s face is focused on in several close-up shots throughout the movie. He even has red lighting over his face during the concert. Last, Shyamalan plays the uncle of the singer, Lady Raven. Cooper has a conversation with Shyamalan in the concert audience.
My favorite stylistic choice is when Shyamalan has a character sharing important information with another character but the camera’s focus is on an event instead. An example of this styling choice can be seen in Shyamalan’s “The Happening.” In the beginning of the film, one woman talks to another woman on a bench in Central Park. The other people in the park are filmed as the one woman shares key information with the other about something being in the air. The people in the park are shown standing very still as if they are in a trance. Both the spoken and visual details of this scene will become important as the film progresses.
In “Trap,” an example of this filming style is when a concert employee selling t-shirts tells Cooper important details regarding the concert being a trap for The Butcher. However, the scene focuses heavily on Cooper’s reactions to the information. Cooper has an eerily polite smile with a creepy look in his eyes as the employee talks.
“Trap” surprised me repeatedly as the plot thickened. I remember thinking that the movie was over at the end of the concert, but it was nowhere near the end of the film.
Shyamalan films have always kept me on my toes, and I am forever guessing his big reveal or plot twist. “Trap” is no exception to Shyamalan’s use of a surprising twist. The trailer for “Trap” made me question whether he would have another big reveal since there is already one in the trailer. However, knowing who The Butcher is due to the trailer is not the biggest shock of the film.
My lips are sealed on the true twist of the film.
Cooper Abbott is played by actor Josh Hartnett, who is also known for his work in “Oppenheimer,” “Pearl Harbor,” “40 Days and 40 Nights,” “Halloween: Resurrection,” and several others. Riley Abbott, Cooper’s daughter, is played by actress Ariel Donoghue, who has been in “Blueback,” the show “Wolf Like Me,” and other works. Lady Raven is played by singer and actress, Saleka Shyamalan, who is one of M. Night Shyamalan’s daughters. Rachel Abbott, Riley’s mother and Cooper’s wife is played by actress Alison Pill, who can be seen in the horror show “Them” and other projects.
“Trap” has a 57% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an audience rating of 65%. It has a 6/10 IMDb rating. M. Night Shyamalan movies do not get the highest ratings, but his films still have a large following. Shyamalan’s highest rated film is “The Sixth Sense” with an 86% critic score and 90% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
“Trap” is an acquired taste. All of M. Night Shyamalan’s films are for those who enjoy following the breadcrumbs until all is revealed. I really enjoyed “Trap” because it was clear that it was an M. Night Shyamalan movie. I love the way he tells a story, and I am always impressed with how he connects everything in his plots. I like to think of M. Night Shyamalan as the Stan Lee of horror movies because he makes cameos in his own movies and creates stories in a way that no one else can mimic.
The film is an hour and forty-five minutes long. It can be watched on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play Movies & TV, and YouTube for $9.99. According to The Numbers, the movie made $82.5 million globally.