There
is
something
strange
in
the
air
that
is
turning
normal
people
crazy
in
stages
first
they
become
catatonic,
then
crazy,
then
commit
suicide
in
gruesome
ways!
What
is
causing
this
mind-boggling
phenomenon?
How
do
you
escape
it?
This
is
what
Manoj
Night
Shyamalam
tries
to
tell
us
through
The
Happening,
written
and
directed
by
him.
Shyamalam
seems
to
have
lost
his
touch.
Groping
in
the
dark,
he
is
desperately
searching
for
the
magical
ingredient
that
made
his
debut
film
The
Sixth
Sense,
a
success.
The
Happening
is
not
happening;
it
is
but
a
ghost
of
that
blockbuster.
A
high
school
science
teacher
(Mark
Wahlberg),
his
flighty
wife
(Zooey
Deschanel
of
the
big
blue
eyes),
and
an
innocent
little
girl
in
their
care
(Ashlyn
Sanchez,
nearly
mute)
face
a
deadly
epidemic
rampaging
through
Northeast
USA.
The
cause
of
the
catastrophe?
It
is
predictably
unknown;
it
might
be
the
work
of
terrorists,
a
virus,
a
toxin
in
the
air,
or
the
legacy
of
nuclear
malfeasance.
Do
they
find
out
what
is
the
cause?
Do
they
find
their
way
around
it?
Watch
the
movie
if
you
want
to
find
out.
The
weakest
link?
Shyamalam
has
spent
way
too
much
time
showing
us
innovative
ways
to
commit
suicide
when
his
script
was
committing
hara-kiri.
The
immense
attention
he
has
given
to
the
gory
details
in
close
up,
from
different
angles,
with
great
frequency
a
veritable
abattoir.
Right
from
the
opening
scene,
all
we
see
are
people
dying
in
the
bloodiest
ways
possible.
The
butchered
scenes
cease
to
make
us
queasy
and
uneasy
after
some
time;
by
the
time
the
story
shifts
to
a
town
where
people
are
hanging
from
trees
in
overly
neat
formations,
mass
suicides
cease
to
shock.
We
don't
even
flinch
at
the
sight
of
the
bodies;
we
just
wonder
if
and
when
Mark
Wahlberg
will
find
the
cure.
Written
and
directed
by
Manoj
Night
Shyamalam,
The
Happening
is
repetitive
in
its
bloody
scenes,
more
so
without
a
proper
explanation
or
a
conclusion.
It
is
a
pity
he
has
added
so
much
gore
to
stretch
the
film
to
90
minutes.
For
a
TV
series
like
Twilight
Zone,
this
may
be
a
good
script.
Even
Mark
Wahlberg
cannot
save
The
Happening,
because
it
just
isn't
happening
enough.
But
for
a
full-length
feature
film,
this
is
just
too
weak.
So
will
it
run
for
a
week?
God
knows!
Cast:
Mark
Wahlberg,
Zooey
Deschanel,
John
Leguizamo,
Spencer
Breslin,
Ashlyn
Sanchez&others
Screnplay&Direction
M.
Night
Shyamalan
Producers:
M.
Night
Shyamalan,
Samuel
L.
Mercer&Barry
Mendel
Cinematography:
Tak
Fujimoto
Visual
Effects:
David
Weinstein
Art
Director:
Anthony
Dunne
Music:
James
Newton
Howard
Editor:
Conrad
Buff