Review of Split (2017) by Jerry F — 29 Jun 2017

SPOLERS.

(SOME SPOILERS) Though the high quality acting was consistent, the storytelling diminished into cheap thrills and then, in the final moment, an unsatisfying reference to one of Shyamalan's other movies. So, in lieu of an actual conclusion, we get "beast on the loose" news footage and a hokey B-movie "gotcha"! This alone would have been frustrating but the effective and disturbing portrayals of child abuse demanded something equal to the caliber of the imagery. I do not mean that we - the viewer - need to be left feeling warm and fuzzy. The conclusion can be uplifting, sad, tragic - just something that ties the story and actually concludes and respects the viewer. In place of anything satisfying, we get a glance to a police officer, a look of concern on the officer's face and ambiguity that I gather we're supposed to accept as "interesting" or "clever and ambiguous". In many ways, the problem is rooted in the silly idea that the "Beast" spared her because of her abuse. In other words, it wasn't Casey's intelligence and fight that allowed her to survive - it was the fact that she lost enough clothes for the "Beast" to see her body (and the marks). There is a feminist argument to make here, but I primarily mean my critique to be centered on bad craft. What made Sixth Sense so powerful was the dedication to character, story, and journey. In this, Shyamalan sets up character and story and then disregards them for makeup and special effects. There is a reason all of his work is compared to "Sixth Sense". It was good.