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Click above to purchase "Unbreakale" at amazon.com
Unbreakable
Vista Series
review by Zach B.
Rated PG-13
Studio: Disney
Running Time: 120 minutes
Starring Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Robin Wright
Penn
Written and Directed by M. Night Shyamalan
Retail Price: $29.99
Features: Behind-The Scenes, Deleted Scenes,
Specs: 2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, English Dolby
Digital 5.1, English DTS 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1,
French Dolby Digital 5.1, English Closed Captions, English
Captions, Spanish Subtitles, THX Certified, Two-Disc Set,
Chapter Search (28 Chapters)
"They say this one has a surprise ending."
No one expected what kind of phenomenon "The Sixth Sense"
would be. All that it had was the normal print and
television adveritising, and just seemed like any old
thriller Disney was releasing. This was all wrong. Not only
did it stay number one at the box office, it went down as
one of the top grossing domestic films with well over 280
million dollars. And that twist ending. Man, that twist
ending which the world loved and made audiences come back
for more.
It seems that a movie like "The Sixth Sense" is a fluke,
seeing how the film's writer and director, M. Night
Shymalan, had two failures before that (but did co-write the
family hit "Stuart Little"). However, "Unbreakable" truly
establishes M. Night Shymalan as a wonderful and careful
storyteller, and not a "one hit wonder". While the film
didn't gross "Sixth Sense" numbers (I didn't expect it to
considering this is a film you can only need to watch once),
critics did praise it but there wasn't a large word of mouth
on it. It had a pretty big opening but then just kept
dropping and dropping... it didn't hold steady like "The
Sixth Sense".
"Unbreakable" follows David Dunn, a man who seems to have
a pretty average life. He has a son, a wife (in which there
are some martial problems) and works as a secuirity guard
for the local university. However, as we see at the start of
the film, David is involved in a train accident, and he is
the only survivor of that horrible wreck. Confused and
vulnerable, David's life seems to be spinning, until he gets
a mysterious card from Elijah Price, an comic art dealer,
which makes David wonder as well as explore why he exactly
survived. As the film goes on, we learn about David and
Elijah, as well as their strengths and their weaknesses, and
what exactly binds the two together.
First things first, this film is intense (that is a good
thing). Shyamalan's script is really sharp, with many good
lines and analogies which do get you thinking. Even better
is his direction, as he uses a lot of symbols and images to
get his point across, but not too much across so that the
viewer can make his or her own conclusions about what is
going on. His symbolisms may seem a bit overused, and that
we've seen them again and again and again, but by the end of
the film, you realize just how well placed and good they are
(I'd mention them, but I don't want to give the movie away!
Let me just say "opposites"...)
The acting is simply flawless. Bruce Willis as David is a
very low-key but heartfelt performance. David Dunn is an
emotionally vulnerable character with some deep secrets, and
Willis captures him perfectly. Samuel L. Jackson's
performance as the brittle boned, comic-obsessed Elijah was
pretty Oscar® worthy (no nomination though). He plays a
man who has felt so much pain and is always expecting it,
yet deep inside he's very intellectual and truly knows
certain things with much confidence. Robin Wright Penn and
Spencer Treat Clark (Lucius from "Gladiator") give nice
performances as well, which make it all more believable
(plus M. Night Shyamalan does a cameo as a drug dealer, he
did one in "The Sixth Sense" as a doctor).
Now, the movie's technical side is breathtaking. The
editing and camera shots used in the movie really bring it
to life. Just notice the opening scene on the train, as we
see Willis talking with the woman who sits down next to him.
We view it back and forth inbetween the seats. The sound
effects and James Newton Howard's score brings a lot of
tension and feeling into some really key scenes. Edurado
Serra, Dylan Tichenor as well as David Acord and Allan Byer
all deserve some Oscar nods.
When it comes to M. Night Shymalan's films now, it won't
be about how good or bad it actually is, but rather what is
that twist ending. Shyamalan does pull a twist ending here,
and it is somewhat shocking. However, at the same time, it
can be predicted and is not the most original ending in the
world. In fact, a character admits that the ending has been
used over and over. Don't get me wrong, I did like the
ending, but unlike "The Sixth Sense", you sorta did see it
coming after the symbolisms given throughout the film, and
this movie does not warrant repeat viewings either. I felt
there could have been some better endings actually, in fact,
one that I predicted during the movie I thought would have
worked as well. But I still feel this ending is strong,
though a bit unoriginal.
I found "Unbreakable" to have a few flaws, but still
enjoyable. Things that I felt should have been more expanded
on is the aftermath of the train wreck. While I know the
story should have been kicked into high gear after that (and
it did), I felt there should have been just a little more
tension with it. Also, the power that we learn of that
Willis has does not feature an origin of sorts, such as how
and why he got it. Some things are better unknown, but I
felt some insight should have brought into this. Plus, there
is a climatic sequence, which I have mixed feelings about. I
felt it wasn't really needed to advance the story, but
rather to establish Dunn and what he holds as well as lead
into the twist ending. Still, that brings some tension and a
little more development into Dunn's weakness, so in that way
I think it fit pretty well. With that said, I felt the movie
was a little bit (but not majorly) uneven, and it could have
had some balancing. But with what transpires, it is still
enjoyable and will keep you on the edge of your seat.
I did enjoy "Unbreakable" a little more than "The Sixth
Sense", due to the less amount of plotholes and the more
spiritual side to it (Shyamalan's movies seem to have really
good depth with spirituality, like in "The Sixth Sense" and
the overpanned "Wide Awake"). However, I have to say I did
enjoy the ending in "The Sixth Sense" more. Still,
"Unbreakable" proves M. Night Shyamalan is a marvelous,
leading Hollywood force with much more than a single hit,
with some extreme raw talent and excellent skills. Despite
some slow parts, "Unbreakable" is a rewarding movie that is
well worth your time.
"Unbreakable" is presented in glorious 2.35:1 anamorphic
widescreen that is THX certified which truly shows off the
visual beauty the film has to offer. Though I must admit
this transfer disappointed me. It's not a bad transfer at
all, a very good one in fact, but I was disappointed with it
when compared to Disney's usual offerings as of late. For
their first title as a Vista Series, it should have been
just as good or even better than usual offerings, but alas,
it's not. There is some grain here and there, and it's the
Disney transfer I've seen with the least amount of
blemishes. I only saw blemishs very few times throughout the
film. But what wrecks this transfer is constant shimmering
and a whole lot of edge enhancment that really annoyed me.
Noise appears as well as the halo effect sometimes around
actors or people. Colors are very good, this movie has a
unique color paltette that is filled with moody colors that
often reflect the film. Detail is good and black levels are
great. This transfer is not perfect (though here and there
it looks it), but it's not that bad. I just expected a lot
better, especially for this movie.
Once again, Disney includes Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1
English mixes. Each are very interesting tracks that feature
good surround use and trap you deep into the film. The sound
in this movie is more low-key (like the movie), but just
because it is doesn't make it bad. It's really quite good.
Surrounds are very active and have quite a nice mix to them.
I often felt the action and suspense around me, there's a
lot of sounds in the film that make it a bit eerie and
creepy and they sound great on either track. Things get
pretty imerssive. Dynamic range is excellent, but what I
liked is how the smallest sounds really made an impact. The
rain, a little bang... just some small things to make it all
the more real. The action portions sound particulary nice,
and there is a good balance between surrounds. Dialogue is
crisp and eays to hear. Each track is truly outstanding and
while the DTS wins again, it won't matter which one you
choose since they are both so well crafted and so well
mixed. A lot of great creative mixing here that really
brings the film to life. French and Spanish Dolby Digital
5.1 tracks are also included as well as English captions,
English closed captions and Spanish subtitles.
It seems everyone is rolling out their new special
edition lines (as of writing this, "Infinifilm" from New
Line is about to launch within a few weeks). Here comes
Disney's new flasgship series named after their own
distribution company, Buena Vista. "Unbreakable" is the
first title in their "Vista Series" and will probably be the
dominant special edition banner for their non-animated
films. Their animated films have the collector's editions
and while Disney has put out special editions before from
their various production companies, this title on the box
will probably unite them all ("The Sixth Sense" was a
special collector's edition if you may recall, since Disney
didn't have a DVD title then for supplement filled
live-action films on DVD and Hollywood Pictures didn't have
their own line of special edition discs... Disney probably
just scrambled to do that or something).
So let's talk about what "Unbreakable" holds. It's a
two-disc set, and all the features are housed on the second
disc. I have to say, I think all of it could have fit easily
onto a single disc. With that said, for a special edition,
there really isn't so much to behold. Perhaps Disney should
have added a few things to the mix, or maybe have a
different title to launch (no pun intended bwahahahahaha)
their new special edition line.
On the second disc, we're treated to only a few
things. Behind-The-Scenes is a docuementary-type
feature which is divided in chapters and covers aspects of
making the film. Barry Mendel, Shyamalan, Willis and a lot
of others are interviewed about a lot of the film's
features. It has clips from the film and behind the scenes
footage. It's not fluffy at all and one of the best
featurettes/documentaries I've seen on DVD. Too bad it's a
mere fourteen minutes.
Comic Book and Superheroes is a ninteen minute
featurette that focuses on the film's comic book themes. It
has interviews with Jacksons, Alex Ross and other comic
moguls who talk about the impact comics do have. It's a nice
supplement that fits well into the film. It also has clips
from the film.
Train Station Sequence is a really nice multi
angle feature. You can have the final 5.1 mix, the score in
5.1 only and the effects in 5.1 only as you toggle through
the final product and the storyboard. Very,very cool. Too
bad you can't switch through the audio though. The stills
are actually in non-anamorphic widescreen.
Ah, Deleted Scenes. Seven to be exact, complete in
5.1 Dolby Digital and 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen. M. Night
introduces each scene and explains why they were cut. I
liked all the scenes a lot. Yes, I felt some should have
been cut but others really should have been in the film
despite Shyamalan's comments. Please do check these out! You
can watch each seperate or play them all.
Finally, Night's First Fight Sequence has an intro
by Shyamalan and like "The Sixth Sense" DVD, it has another
short film by him he did as a youngster called "Millionare".
He hates it, but it's all in good fun. It's even in
non-anamorphic widescreen! Gotta love that cheesy music too.
As you can see, "Unbreakable" isn't feature loaded as one
would expect, but there are some things to point out. The
packaging is really nice complete with Alex Ross art and a
spiffy production booklet inside. The menus are also nice. I
was glad to see the supplements in anamorphic widescreen,
and hopefully to see future Disney supplements like this
(like New Line). Believe it or not, I was disappointed there
were no trailers and TV spots as I really did like the
film's advertising campaign. Sadly, the isolated score track
with commentary from James Newton Howard was cut out of the
release for whatever reason. The film has a great score so I
was not too happy about that. Also, when will Shyamalan
record a commentary track? I'm really glad to see him
involved in the DVD releases, but I think a commentary from
him would be outstanding.
"Unbreakable" is a great, rewarding cinematic experience
and just further proves that Shyamalan is a true visionary.
While the film is not for everyone and the DVD features are
a bit disappointing, the presentation reflects the film as
it should be. Go "break" out your cash (HAHAHAHAHAHA I MADE
A FUNNY) and check out "Unbreakable".
 (4/5 - NOT included in
final score)
(4/5)
 (4.5/5)
 (2.5/5)
(4/5,
NOT an average)
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