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What if people around you started dropping dead suddenly?
What if the person talking to you suddenly shoots himself point blank, right in front of your eyes?
What if you suddenly realise it is your turn next?

Sounds eerie? Then trust me, it looks spookier when you see it ‘happening’– on screen!

From the director of ‘The Sixth Sense’ comes another heart pounding thriller, ‘The Happening’. The movie begins with no clear warning. It just starts off with a very disturbing, dark tone as a series of chilling events happens across major American cities. Within minutes unfolds episodes of strange shocking deaths that defy reason and boggle the mind as people take their own lives voluntarily and so casually that it sends a quick shiver down your spine. And no, the director has not minced (no pun intended) the graphic details or left much to imagination here!

An uneasy and unsettling atmosphere has been set, enough to intrigue the viewer on what’s going to happen next. What is causing this sudden, total breakdown of human behaviour? And how…? Is it some kind of new terrorist attack, an experiment gone wrong or a diabolical toxic weapon?

But just then the suspense starts losing its grip – by shifting focus amidst these bizarre incidents on one couple going through a marital crisis. Elliot Moore (Mark Wahlberg) and his wife Alma (Zooey Deschanel) who realise that first they need to fight together – for their survival. But can this terrifying, invisible killer ever be outrun? They flee from the city with the hope of getting out of reach of the grisly, ever-growing attacks. Yet it soon becomes clear that no one and nowhere – is safe. In a dramatic ending, the events of ‘The Happening’ ultimately become the backdrop against which Elliot and Alma rediscover their love for each other.

After a few hits (‘Signs’, ‘The Village’) and misses (‘Lady in the Water’), M. Night Shyamalan seems to have played it safe this time. Though the opening of the movie is terrifying, the shock of it wears off soon and doesn’t carry on with the same momentum till the end. The movie hasn’t truly done justice to Shyamalan’s otherwise brilliant directorial vision. But never the less, it’s worth a watch.

Related links :

The Happening on IMDB

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