Reviews: The Happening (2008) Movie Review
Genres: Thriller, Drama, Sci-Fi, Mystery, Comedy, Adventure
Subgenres: Survival, Thriller, Isolation, Lovecraftian
Horror fans will enjoy our review of The Happening (2008), where we cover its story, scares, and how it ranks among modern horror classics.
The Happening (2008) is a 1h 31-min American science fiction thriller film that had an estimated budget of $48 million and grossed over $163.4 million at the box office. Director M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense (1999), Signs (2002), Unbreakable (2000), The Village (2004))
Understands fear and gave us a nail-biting tension filled movie that had the potential of being better but fell short in some areas. Shyamalan is a terrific director and could have easily made this film into an excellent watch, but I am not sure what he was thinking while directing this movie.
The Happening began by showing us several random people in Central Park in New York City committing suicide which was believed to be a result of a bioterrorist attack from an airborne neurotoxin. That theory quickly fades away as the "unknown whatever" is rapidly spreading across the northeastern United States. We are then introduced to Elliot Moore (Mark Wahlberg - Boogie Nights (1997), The Fighter (2010)) who is a high school science teacher in Philadelphia who decides to take the train to Harrisburg with his wife, Alma. Elliot’s friends Julian (John Leguizamo - Ice Age (2002), Moulin Rouge! (2001), Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006), Romeo + Juliet (1996)) and his eight-year-old daughter Jess accompanies them.
Julian heard that Philadelphia was attacked and leaves his daughter with Alma and Elliot so that he can return to Philadelphia to search for his wife. Elliot, Alma (Zooey Deschanel - Elf (2003), 500 Days of Summer (2009), Yes Man (2008), Almost Famous (2000)) and Jess hitch a ride with a man and his wife. The man is a nurseryman who thinks that the plants are releasing chemicals to defend themselves from human threats. Elliot later realizes that the plants are targeting large groups of people and split his group into smaller groups.
Elliot, Alma, and Jess met Mrs. Jones, who lives in a secluded area and does not know about the disasters happening. The group once again realizes that the plants are not only after large groups still but are now targeting anyone regardless if you are in a group or not. What happens in the next few scenes was too funny because how in the world can the movie end like that.
I was so over the tiresome melodrama Elliot and Alma’s relationship, but that does mean that there was not some good scenes and points in this film. I was fascinated to see what was going on in the movie as the story was remarkable and enlightening in a certain way but was also slow and tedious at times. I have all sorts of feelings about this film but it definitely is not a movie that I will see again. I gave this movie a five because of the breathtaking outdoor sceneries that I cannot get out from my head (it was gorgeous) and because it was slightly different where plant toxins are the cause of people committing suicide and dying.
Sources Used to Shape This Review
Insights in this review are drawn from director interviews, fan commentary, production notes, and long-form breakdowns across genre-specific platforms. Content is written uniquely and reviewed for accuracy.
- The Happening Rating Scores
- Our Score: 5/10
- Overall Score: 3.94/10
- IMDB: 5.0/10
- MetaCritic: 3.4/10
- Rotten Tomatoes: 1.7/10
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