Devil

Director: Drew Dowdle & John Erick Dowdle

Rating: PG-13

The Bouw-Man.

I have been very critical of M. Night Shyamalan work over the past six years.  It’s hard to find a good thing to say about “The Village,” “Lady in the Water” or “The Happening.”  However, if you watched the trailer to any of those three films you were probably intrigued.  That’s one thing you can say about a film by M. Night Shyamalan, he markets it well starting with the preview itself.  The trailer is very well done, because it keeps the audience guessing by only revealing a few key plot points.  Among the plot points, we know that five apparent strangers enter an elevator in a high-rise building.  While in the elevator, they become trapped when the elevator experiences mechanical problems.  After some probing the group of strangers realize that the devil is among them.  The synopsis sounds similar to the classic Agatha Christie book, “And Then There Were None.”  If it comes anywhere close to that tale, “Devil” will have to be considered a critical success.  Unless there are some awfully bad reviews coming for “Devil,” I think it’s worth a look based on the preview alone.

 

Hopefully it does come through as a suspenseful thriller, because M. Night Shyamalan definitely did not invest a lot of money in the salaries of its actors.  During the trailer, I was thinking to myself, “OK, we have the daughter from “Edge of Darkness,” the friend from “500 Days of Summer” and the mean mother from “Mystic River” as three of the key players.  The other two I don’t recognize at all.”  It doesn’t help a film from a marketing perspective when you don’t know the names of any of the actors in a film.  I thought the detective was Dylan McDermott at first, but I guess it’s someone named Chris Messina.  Another potential negative is the film’s 80- minute runtime.  I’m a firm believer that a film set for wide release should hit the 90-minute mark, so it better be a wild 80 minutes to warrant the ticket price.

Prediction.

There are three other films opening this week, and the summer was filled with its share of horror films (and even more coming in the months ahead).  As a result, it may be tough for “Devil” to meet expectations.  It does look interesting, but that doesn’t always translate to huge box office numbers.  A $13 million opening weekend total sounds about right for “Devil.”

Opening Weekend Gross: $13 Million

Noodles.

As the lights went down I felt that familiar excitement which you can only get when you know your movie is about to begin. Popcorn in hand, and sharing a mixed slushie with my wife, I was prepared to enjoy the previews before my chosen film would start. The comes alive with an unusual and slightly unsettling visual of a world turned upside down. Words flash across the screen turning my curiosity from mild to red hot. I realize that this is a horror movie, set in an elevator? I think to myself this can't work, can it? Then the trailer dials it up a notch or two and I'm thinking that this could be one of those crazy ideas that makes for a fun scary movie. I think back to watching Evil Dead and realizing that they made a fun horror movie, and there were only four people in a cabin for that thing. I might have to go check this one out. This could be........what? 

"From the Mind of M. Night Shyamalan"

A collective groan travels like lightning around the audience. I feel shame at actually being excited for a minute. Fooled once again by a creator who has taken me down the road to promised bliss and delivered disappointing garbage. 

Prediction.

As someone who couldn't wait to see 'The Village', then was sadly shown 'The Village' I couldn't wait for this trailer to end. If anyone NEEDS to take their name off of a picture right now is Shyamalan, I was actually interested until his name flashed across the screen. And as the scene I described actually happened to me, I think more than a few people will probably stay away. Any dude that can royally screw up a great story like The Last Air Bender, needs to be put in the corner for a while.

Opening Weekend: Gross: $5 Million

SHOWTIMES & TICKETS

Enter ZIP Code: