Review of Split (2017) by Jacoobi456 — 11 Jun 2017

Split is one of my favourite movies. Ever. I know Shyamalan hasn't had the best of runs over the past years, but Split begs to differ. Right from the start, James McAvoy steals the show with a performance, I think, worthy of an Academy Award. He switches effortlessly from personality to personality, which isn't easy considering one is a 9-year old boy, and another an OCD middle-aged man, and another a household-wife kinda woman. When the 24th personality is finally revealed, even you feel scared and on edge, as even his absences from the camera make you wonder where he is or what he's up to. In other words, no matter if he's on or off-screen , he's always on your mind. The other performance worth a notice is that of Anya Taylor-Joy, who conveyed her emotions of utter fear outstandingly, every facial expression saying a thousand things at once, every sentence weighted perfectly, knowing when to commit one to your memory and really feel for her. Shyamalan has wonderfully balanced the amount of horror, comedy (Hedwig, the dancing scene worth a mention- creepy but funny in its own right) and abnormality ('The Beast'- not totally unbelievable but something that makes you go 'Woah, that is COOL': and occasionally scares the sh!t out of you.). The main focus of the film is Kevin's mind, and as said: McAvoy doesn't let you forget that. Shyamalan explores his mind perfectly, letting the viewer unravel the sometimes twisted layers of Kevin's mind themselves, trusting the viewer to keep watching and follow the plot closely, immersing them in the story, which is one of the best aspects of the film- the sense of involvement with Kevin and his antics, and the rollercoaster of emotions that come hand-in-hand with them. It isn't only Kevin that we learn more about as the flim progresses, however: we learn about why Casey(Anya's character) is considerably calmer and placid than the other two girls; her exposure to physical abuse by her uncle. This in itself heightens the feelings towards Casey, and adds to the horror of the film, summed up by one of the very last scenes of the movie, when Casey is told that her uncle is waiting, and the look on her face almost says 'lock me back up with the psycho. Please.'. Again, Shyamalan trusts us to stick with the film and learn the answers to her longing to be outside and her nonchalant-esque attitude to her rather hairy situation, which when is discovered is quite harrowing.

My only con about this movie are the performances of the two other girls, Claire and Marcia (played by Haley Lu Richardson and Jessica Sula); their reactions seemed too forced, and in general the duo seemed out of place in this film.

So, basically: Watch. This. Film.