Split | |
---|---|
Directed by | M. Night Shyamalan |
Written by | M. Night Shyamalan |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Mike Gioulakis |
Edited by | Luke Ciarrocchi |
Music by | West Dylan Thordson |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release dates |
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Running time | 118 minutes [1] |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $9 million [2] [3] |
Box office | $278.5 million [3] |
Split is a 2016 American psychological thriller film and the second installment in the Unbreakable trilogy and a "stealth sequel" to Unbreakable, written, directed and produced by M. Night Shyamalan, and starring James McAvoy, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Betty Buckley. The film follows a man with dissociative identity disorder who kidnaps and imprisons three teenage girls in an isolated underground facility.
Principal photography began on November 11, 2015, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The film premiered at Fantastic Fest on September 26, 2016, and was released in the United States on January 20, 2017, and the first film to be disturbed by Universal Pictures instead of Touchstone Pictures, following its defunct in 2016. It received generally positive reviews; critics highly praised McAvoy's performance, and welcomed Shyamalan's direction. Some mental health advocates criticized the film for its stigmatization of mental illness. Split was a commercial success, grossing $278 million worldwide on a budget of $9 million, becoming Blumhouse Productions' highest-grossing film until 2023 when Five Nights at Freddy's overtook it. The 2019 film Glass , which combined the casts and characters of both previous films, concluded the trilogy.
Just outside Philadelphia, "Dennis" kidnaps three girls — Claire, Casey and Marcia — when they are waiting in the car of Claire's father to be driven home from a birthday party. He imprisons the girls in a secret underground lair beneath the Philadelphia Zoo, where they meet "Patricia", who protects the girls from "Dennis" to save them for "The Beast", and a 9-year-old boy alter named "Hedwig", revealed to be the true dominant alter, whom "Patricia" and "Dennis" are manipulating to shut out the other alters. The girls try to escape by going through the vents, manipulating Kevin's alters, and communicating with another individual via a walkie-talkie, but all of their attempts end in failure.
It becomes clear to the viewer that Kevin Wendell Crumb, a man diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID) rooted in his history of childhood abuse and abandonment, has been managing living with his 23 distinct identities ("alters") well for several years with help from his therapist, Dr. Karen Fletcher. The most dominant of the desirable alters, "Barry", has been in control of deciding which personalities get to control Kevin's body, and lately he has not allowed "Dennis" or "Patricia" to have a turn due to the former's tendency to harass young girls and the latter's belief in a mysterious entity called "The Beast" who plans to rid the world of the "impure", that is, those who have not suffered. Dr. Fletcher is concerned when she realizes that "Dennis" has been impersonating "Barry" during their sessions after questioning him about an incident where two teenage girls had placed his hands on their breasts while drunk.
Dr. Fletcher goes to the zoo to talk to "Dennis" when he claims to have made contact with "The Beast", in reality a yet-to-manifest 24th personality, but she discovers Claire, so "Dennis" incapacitates the doctor and locks her up. He goes to the train station and boards an empty train car, where "The Beast" takes over. "The Beast", who displays enhanced strength and animalistic tendencies, returns to his lair, thanks Dr. Fletcher for her help, and crushes her to death. He savagely feeds upon and kills Claire and Marcia before approaching Casey, but she calls out Kevin's full name, which brings forth his original personality. Upon learning of the situation and realizing that he has not been in control of his own body for two years, the horrified Kevin begs Casey to kill him with a shotgun he has hidden. This prompts all 24 personalities to fight for control, with "Patricia" the victor. She tells Casey that "Kevin" has been made to sleep far away and will not awaken now even if his name is called.
While "Patricia" returns control to "The Beast", Casey retrieves the shotgun and a box of cartridges and escapes into a tunnel. She manages to shoot "The Beast" twice before running out of ammunition, but he only sustains minor wounds. He moves closer to murder her, but stops when he sees scars across her abdomen and chest, which are related to her having been abused by her uncle and legal guardian, John, both before and after her father's death. Because she is "pure", "The Beast" spares Casey's life, and she is rescued the next morning by the police.
In another hideout, "Dennis", "Patricia", and "Hedwig" discuss the power of "The Beast" and their plans to change the world. At the Silk City Diner, several patrons watch a news report on "The Beast's" crimes, with the correspondent mentioning that his numerous alters have earned him the nickname "The Horde". A waitress notes the similarity to a criminal in a wheelchair who was incarcerated fifteen years earlier, who was also given a nickname. As she tries to remember it, David Dunn, sitting next to her, replies that it was "Mr. Glass".
Shyamalan conceived the idea for Split years before he wrote the screenplay. He explained, "In this case, I had written the character a while ago, and I had written out a few scenes of it, so I even had dialogue written out, which is really unusual for me. It sat there for a long time, and I really don't have a clear reason why I didn't pull the trigger earlier. But this felt like the perfect time to do it, with the type of movies I'm doing now, and the type of tones I am interested in – humor and suspense." [5]
On October 2, 2015, James McAvoy was cast in the film to play the lead, replacing Joaquin Phoenix, who had left the project a few weeks before it began shooting. [6] [7] On October 12, 2015, Anya Taylor-Joy, Betty Buckley, Jessica Sula, and Haley Lu Richardson were added to the cast. [8] On October 27, 2015, Universal Pictures came on board to release the film and titled it as Split. [9]
The character of Kevin had been in one of the early drafts of Shyamalan's Unbreakable , but he had pulled the character out, stating there were balancing issues at that time. With Split, he brought in some of the scenes he had written for Unbreakable around Kevin. [4] The film ends with the appearance of Bruce Willis's character, David Dunn, from Unbreakable, who makes a comment in reference to the previous film, placing Unbreakable and Split within the same narrative universe. Shyamalan requested permission to incorporate the character from Walt Disney Studios, which had produced Unbreakable. [10] Shyamalan met with Sean Bailey about the use of the character; they came to a gentlemen's agreement where Bailey agreed to allow the use of the character in the film without a fee and Shyamalan promised that Disney would be involved in a sequel if developed. [10] Shyamalan was very secretive of Willis' involvement in Split, removing the final scene from the film for test audiences. The cameo was shown at the 2016 Fantastic Fest and 2016 AFI Fest months before its theatrical release. [4]
As with The Visit , Shyamalan funded the film himself. [11] Principal photography on the film began on November 11, 2015, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. [12] [13] Reshoots occurred in June 2016. [14] During post-production, Sterling K. Brown's role as Shaw, Dr. Fletcher's neighbor, was cut from the film, as Shyamalan felt that his scenes were ultimately unnecessary. [15] McAvoy broke his hand in a scene where he was supposed to punch a metal door, but missed the soft section of the door he intended to hit. [16]
Split had its world premiere at Fantastic Fest on September 26, 2016. [17] It also screened at the AFI Fest on November 15, 2016. [18] [19] The film was theatrically released on January 20, 2017, in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. [20] Split was released on Digital HD on April 4, 2017, and on Blu-ray, DVD, and On-Demand on April 18, 2017, by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. [21]
Split grossed $138.3 million in the United States and Canada and $140.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide gross of $278.5 million, against a production budget of $9 million. [2] [3] Deadline Hollywood calculated the film made a net profit of $68.2 million, when factoring together all expenses and revenues. [22] It had a gross profit of $105.1 million, with over 2,000% return on investment (ROI), making it the most profitable film of 2017. [23]
In North America, the film was released alongside the openings of xXx: Return of Xander Cage , The Resurrection of Gavin Stone and The Founder , as well as the wide expansion of 20th Century Women , and was initially expected to gross $20–25 million from 3,038 theaters in its opening weekend. [24] It made $2 million from its Thursday night previews at 2,295 theaters, doubling the $1 million made by Shyamalan's The Visit in 2015, and $14.6 million on its first day, increasing weekend estimates to $30–37 million; [25] it ended up opening to $40.2 million, finishing first at the box office. [26] In its second weekend, the film made $26.3 million, again topping the box office. [27] In its third week, it again topped the box office, this time with $14.6 million, becoming the first Shyamalan film to finish at number one for three straight weeks since The Sixth Sense in 1999. [28]
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 78% based on 313 reviews, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Split serves as a dramatic tour de force for James McAvoy in multiple roles – and finds writer-director M. Night Shyamalan returning resoundingly to thrilling form." [29] Metacritic reports a weighted average score 63 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [30] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale, [31] while comScore reported filmgoers gave it a 78% overall positive score and a 54% "definite recommend". [32]
Jordan Hoffman of The Guardian gave the film four stars out of five, stating it to be a "masterful blend of Hitchcock, horror and therapy session". [33] Also writing for The Guardian, Steve Rose had strong praise for McAvoy, opining that the actor "does a fine and fearless job of selling his character's varied personae". He commended McAvoy's ability to switch personalities in one scene toward the end of the film, saying: "It's a little like the T-1000 at the end of Terminator 2. But there are no special effects here, just acting." [34] Christy Lemire, writing for RogerEbert.com , gave the film a score of 3 out of 4 stars, describing it as "an exciting return to form" and "a thrilling reminder of what a technical master [Shyamalan] can be. All his virtuoso camerawork is on display: his lifelong, loving homage to Alfred Hitchcock, which includes, as always, inserting himself in a cameo. And the twist—that there is no Big Twist—is one of the most refreshing parts of all." [35] Kate Muir of The Times gave the film a score of 3 stars out of 5, writing that it "is full of plot holes, but McAvoy's joyful and menacingly lunatic performance papers over most of them." [36]
David Edelstein of New York magazine was critical of the film, writing: "Shyamalan has returned to what he loves to do: use cheap horror tropes to create his own harebrained mythos", and added: "Though Shyamalan doesn't use a lot of blood in Split — there's barely any — his framing sexualizes the torture of the other two teenage girls in a way I found reprehensible. And his depictions of childhood sexual abuse are clinically accurate enough to make anyone with experience of such things feel sick." [37] Anthony Lane of The New Yorker described the film as "an old-fashioned exploitation flick—part of a depleted and degrading genre that not even M. Night Shyamalan, the writer and director of Split, can redeem." [38]
The film has been referred to as the first supervillain origin story; the first time a film has been completely devoted to the origins of a villain as opposed to the origins of the superhero. [39] [40] It has also been described as Hollywood's first stealth sequel, [11] with The Hollywood Reporter calling the ending reveal "one of the most shocking surprises in cinematic history". [41]
The film has been poorly received by mental illness and dissociative identity disorder campaigners. Mental health advocates warn that the film stigmatizes dissociative identity disorder and may directly affect those living with it. [42] "You are going to upset and potentially exacerbate symptoms in thousands of people who are already suffering," psychiatrist Dr. Garrett Marie Deckel, a DID specialist at Mount Sinai's Icahn School of Medicine, said immediately after seeing the film. She said that, in contrast to McAvoy's character, people with DID, who may represent over 1% of Americans, are rarely violent, and research has shown they are far more likely to hurt themselves than to hurt others. Movies tend to portray only "the most extreme aspects" of the disorder, which, she said, can misrepresent a form of mental ill-health that is not well understood by the lay public, and even some psychiatrists.
In a statement about the movie, the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD) cited a soon-to-be-released study of 173 people with DID. The researchers found that only 3 percent were charged with an offense, 1.8 percent were fined, and less than 1 percent were in jail over a six-month span. No convictions or probations were reported in that time period. In an open letter to Shyamalan, several activists said that "Split represents yet another gross parody of us based on fear, ignorance, and sensationalism, only much worse." [43]
Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
London Film Critics' Circle | January 22, 2017 | Young British/Irish Performer of the Year | Anya Taylor-Joy (also for Morgan and The Witch ) | Nominated | [44] |
MTV Movie & TV Awards | May 7, 2017 | Best Actor in a Movie | James McAvoy | Nominated | [45] |
Saturn Awards | June 28, 2017 | Best Thriller Film | Split | Nominated | [46] |
Best Supporting Actress | Betty Buckley | Nominated | |||
Teen Choice Awards | August 13, 2017 | Choice Movie: Villain | James McAvoy | Nominated | [47] |
San Diego Film Critics Society | December 11, 2017 | Best Actor | James McAvoy | Won | [48] |
Seattle Film Critics Society | December 18, 2017 | Villain of the Year | James McAvoy | Won | [49] |
Casting Society of America | January 18, 2018 | Studio or Independent – Drama | Douglas Aibel, Diane Heery, Jason Loftus, and Henry Russell Bergstein | Nominated | [50] |
Empire Awards | March 18, 2018 | Best Horror | Split | Nominated | [51] |
Shyamalan expressed hope for a third installment following Split, saying, "I hope [a third Unbreakable film happens]. The answer is yes. I'm just such a wimp sometimes. I don't know what's going to happen when I go off in my room, a week after this film opens, to write the script. But I'm going to start writing. [I have] a really robust outline, which is pretty intricate. But now the standards for my outlines are higher. I need to know I've won already. I'm almost there but I'm not quite there." [52] He explained that the final scene from Split was David's realization that Mr. Glass from the first film was right; there are superpowered people in the world. [53] Disney, which produced Unbreakable through its Touchstone Pictures division, was expected to be a production partner and have financial participation with Universal for the sequel. [10]
After the critical and financial success of Split, Shyamalan confirmed that his next film would be a sequel film that follows the events of Unbreakable and Split and would serve as the final part of the Unbreakable trilogy. [54] [55] [56] [57] In April 2017, he revealed he was nearing completion on the script for the next film. [58] On April 26, he revealed on his Twitter page that the script was completed and the sequel would be titled Glass . [59] [60]
Following a week of rehearsals, principal production commenced on October 2, 2017, in Philadelphia. [61]
The cast included the return of Bruce Willis from both previous films, Samuel L. Jackson, Spencer Treat Clark, and Charlayne Woodard from Unbreakable, and James McAvoy and Anya Taylor-Joy from Split, all reprising their roles. [62] [63] Sarah Paulson joined the cast as a new character. [64] It was reported the new film would focus on Dunn (Willis) chasing down Crumb (McAvoy) in his Beast persona, all the while being embroiled in a plot orchestrated by Price (Jackson). [63]
Glass was released on January 18, 2019. [62]
Unbreakable is a 2000 American superhero thriller film written, produced, and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, and starring Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, and Robin Wright. It is the first installment in the Unbreakable film series. In Unbreakable, David Dunn (Willis) survives a train crash with no injuries, leading to the realization that he harbors superhuman abilities. As he begins to grapple with this discovery, he comes to the attention of disabled comic book store owner Elijah Price (Jackson), who manipulates David to understand him.
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Manoj Nelliyattu "M. Night" Shyamalan is an American filmmaker. His films often employ supernatural plots and twist endings. The cumulative gross of his films exceeds $3.3 billion globally. Shyamalan has received various accolades, including nominations for two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards and a Golden Globe.
Blinding Edge Pictures is an American film and television production company, founded in 1998 by M. Night Shyamalan. The company is known for producing films, such as the Unbreakable series, Signs, The Village, The Happening, After Earth, The Visit, Old and Knock at the Cabin.
The Last Airbender is a 2010 American action adventure fantasy film written, co-produced, and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. Based on the first season of the Nickelodeon animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005–08), the film stars Noah Ringer, Dev Patel, Nicola Peltz, Jackson Rathbone, Shaun Toub, Aasif Mandvi, and Cliff Curtis. The plot follows Aang, a young Avatar who must master all four elements of air, water, fire, and earth and restore balance to the world while stopping the Fire Nation from conquering the Water Tribes and the Earth Kingdom.
James McAvoy is a Scottish actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in The Near Room (1995) and appeared mostly on television until 2003, when his film career began. His notable television work includes the thriller State of Play (2003), the science fiction miniseries Frank Herbert's Children of Dune (2003), and the drama series Shameless (2004–2005).
Dylan Rhodes O'Brien is an American actor. His first major role was as Stiles Stilinski in the MTV supernatural series Teen Wolf (2011–2017). He achieved further prominence for his lead role in the science fiction Maze Runner trilogy (2014–2018), which led to more film appearances.
American actor Bruce Willis began his career in 1980 with an uncredited role in The First Deadly Sin. After guest-starring in a 1984 episode of Miami Vice, he appeared in the first episode of the 1985 revival of The Twilight Zone. Willis achieved fame starring in the ABC comedy-drama series Moonlighting (1985–1989), for which he received three Golden Globe nominations for Best Actor – Television Series Musical or Comedy and two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. In 1988, he starred as John McClane in Die Hard (1988), a film that spawned four sequels that earned him international recognition as an action hero.
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Anya-Josephine Marie Taylor-Joy is an actress. Born in Miami and raised in Buenos Aires and London, she left school at the age of 16 to pursue an acting career. After a series of small television roles, her breakthrough came with a leading role in the horror film The Witch (2015). She continued with roles in the horror film Split (2016) and its sequel Glass (2019), the black comedy film Thoroughbreds (2017), and the television crime drama series Peaky Blinders (2019–2022).
David Dunn is a fictional superhero and protagonist in M. Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable film series, portrayed by American actor Bruce Willis. Dunn is a former college football prodigy and a security guard who discovers he has superhuman abilities. He is the protagonist in Unbreakable, makes a cameo in Split, and again is a major character in Glass.
Glass is a 2019 American superhero thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. It is a crossover and sequel to Shyamalan's previous films Unbreakable (2000) and Split (2016) and the third and final installment in the Unbreakable trilogy. Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Spencer Treat Clark, and Charlayne Woodard reprise their Unbreakable roles, while James McAvoy and Anya Taylor-Joy return as their Split characters, with Sarah Paulson, Adam David Thompson, and Luke Kirby joining the cast. The film sees David Dunn / The Overseer as he and Kevin Wendell Crumb / The Horde are captured and placed in a psychiatric facility with Elijah Price / Mr. Glass, where they contemplate the authenticity of their superhuman powers.
The Unbreakable trilogy, also known as the Eastrail 177 Trilogy, is an American superhero thriller and psychological horror film series. The trilogy consists of Unbreakable (2000), Split (2016), and Glass (2019), which were all written, produced, and directed by M. Night Shyamalan.
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Indian-American filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan began his career in 1992 with the student film Praying with Anger, which he wrote, directed, produced, and starred in. He then wrote the screenplays for the comedy movies Wide Awake and Stuart Little (1999). In 1999, he rose to prominence for writing and directing the supernatural movie The Sixth Sense, for which he received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. He then wrote, directed, and produced the superhero movie Unbreakable, the first entry in the Eastrail 177 Trilogy followed by Split in 2016 and Glass in 2019.
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