Reviews

Much of the discontent towards this film arises from the fact that it is marketed as an action thriller, when it is a psychological film about a man who orchestrates situations to achieve a desired outcome.

The first twenty minutes of Glass builds up as a crossover sequel to Unbreakable and Split, following the exploits of Kevin Wendell Crumb/The Horde (played by James McAvoy) and David Dunn/The Overseer (played by Bruce Willis) and their brief confrontation in an abandoned factory where a group of abducted girls are held hostage, only for the narrative to take a complete turn when a psychiatrist reveals herself and has the authorities lock up the two men in a mental institution.

From here we are reintroduced to Elijah Price/Mr. Glass (played by Samuel L. Jackson), the ACTUAL protagonist and friend-turned-foe of David Dunn from Unbreakable. Elijah Price is a mass killer obsessed with comic books who employs terrorist methods to awaken what he perceives to be latent abilities in gifted individuals.

And his story is more of a cat-and-mouse game in which he tries to outwit psychiatrist Dr. Ellie Staple (played by Sarah Paulson), who is part of a secret society that monitors, pacifies, and eliminates exceptional individuals, and her attempts to gaslight the three main leads into believing that they don't have superhuman abilities.

Glass eventually builds to a climax between The Overseer and The Horde, and an unexpected plot twist which angered many moviegoers, although Price achieves his goal of revealing the existence of superhuman individuals to the world. Personally, I enjoyed it for the ideas it tries to convey and the very limited budget M. Night Shyamalan had to work with.

Because Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson are renowned Hollywood actors with very expensive salaries, their roles in this film were relatively short to accommodate it's small budget. Although James McAvoy hammed it up brilliantly with his portrayal of an abuse victim with split personalities who manifests a cannibalistic persona in the form of The Beast.

I don't know how I didn't catch wind of this movie ten years ago when it was initially released, since I am a fan of low-budget horror films.

The plot of 'Midnight Movie' centers around a slasher film in the vein of 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' titled "The Dark Beneath". Whoever watches the film is prone to being chased around by the fictional serial killer Ted Radfords (Arthur Roberts), who is somehow able to manifest himself in the real world.

Because he is a fictional character within the confines of our realm, he is unable to killed. Although this doesn't stop most of the theater staff and theatergoers who watch this movie from being picked off one by one. And in very gruesome fashion.

After the main protagonist, Bridget (Rebekah Brandes) and her younger brother Timmy (Justin Baric) end up the only survivors of the serial killers rampage, they find themselves dragged into the movie world of "The Dark Beneath" where they are forced to escape his clutches while trying to find their way back to the real world.

Overall, I thought 'Midnight Movie' was serviceable, since not too many films of this caliber get us invested in the main characters. The actors, especially the lead actress, gave good performances, and the practical effects were very convincing. I'd recommend 'Midnight Movie' to people who have nothing else to do and are looking to kill a little time.