Thursday, August 08, 2019
Glass
- Commentary: I own this movie because I was destined to own it. I became of fan of the Eastrail 177 Trilogy before it was a trilogy, when it was only Unbreakable.
I'm not much for superhero movies or superhero stories. I own a few, a very few, considering the extent of my entire collection, but superhero stories have to be strong on character for me ... really strong, and have a super (forgive the pun) compelling story. Unbreakable was one of those few superhero movies with which I fell in love.
When I heard a sequel was planned, and then a third, I was so excited that I vowed, before either movie was even in theaters on initial runs, that I would own them.
I appreciated (and enjoyed) Split as a continuation of what I knew was going to be a trilogy. James McAvoy was splendid (Can that guy act, or what?!?). His performance blew me away because I'm familiar with a fair amount of his work (there is a lot of it) and didn't know he had that "horde" of characters inside him. It was, and still is, breathtaking for me to watch his performance in that movie. I also, though, considered Split rather like the middle of a book ... it might bog you down, a bit, but you know help is coming in the last few chapters and, anyway, you need to know what's in the middle to realize you're being helped at the end.
By the time Glass arrived in theaters, I was ravenous for it, and unsettled that I'd have awhile to wait before it became a DVD and I could see it. [Why didn't I see it in a theater, I hear you asking ... that's another story ... remind me to talk about that later.] Finally, it was available for purchase. I didn't wait for the price to drop.
What can I say? I had no idea, during my long wait, what to expect, except that I expected something of the calibre of Unbreakable, something that would astound me and resolve the story in a superlatively unthinkable way.
Didn't happen.
In fact, I had to read the synopsis of the movie in Wikipedia just before I wrote this in order to remember the story. To my mind, there was little spark in the story, little spark in the continuation of the characters, and I was left unsatisfied. I can't give you an alternative scenario of what I would have liked to have seen. I just know that as I watched the movie I kept waiting for Something To Happen ... then, the movie was over and I realized, oh, nothing is going to happen.
I've thought about it. A lot. I can't imagine what it is I needed from the third movie to satisfy me. I just know that the third movie made both the first and the second seem implausible. That's a shame, because I fell in love with the first movie and remained excited for the story by the second movie. The third? Well, it seems to me like it's a third movie that exists without a first or second movie having been made.
Maybe Shyamalan tired of the concept he'd imagined as the Eastrail 177 Trilogy before he finished it. Maybe he never meant for Unbreakable to be more than what it was, which would have been fine with me. It's one of my all time favorite movies and didn't need sequels. Despite my disappointment, I'm going to keep all three movies. Forever. I know I'll watch Unbreakable again. I'll probably watch the other two again, as well. When I watch Glass though, it won't be for the sheer enjoyment of it. It will be to wonder, once again, what went wrong.
I'll finish this write-up with a quote from the Wikipedia article about this movie (to which I've linked in the title): "M. Night Shyamalan has been asked numerous times if there would be any sequel for Glass. On January 8, 2019, he officially confirmed that no sequels are currently planned, saying he has no interest building a cinematic universe."
Thank you and good [M] Night [Shyamalan].
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role James McAvoy Kevin Wendell Crumb/The Horde Bruce Willis David Dunn/The Overseer Samuel L. Jackson Elijah Price/Mr. Glass Sarah Paulson Dr. Ellie Staple Anya Taylor-Joy Casey Cooke Spencer Treat Clark Joseph Dunn Charlayne Woodard Mrs. Price Luke Kirby Pierce
Release Date: 2019
Directed by M. Night Shyamalan.
Labels: action2, adventure2, drama3, fantasy1, horror1, m-night-shyamalan, pseudo-cgi-animation, samuel-l-jackson, super-hero1, suspense1, thriller1, tragedy1, violence1
