Title: Trap
MPA Rating: PG-13
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donogue, Saleka Night Shyamalan
Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins

What It Is: Cooper (Hartnett) is a suburban dad and firefighter taking his young daughter to see her favorite singer, Lady Raven (Shyamalan). But Cooper is harboring a dark secret—an entire other side of himself, a dark side he’s worked tirelessly to keep hidden. However, this concert is not what it seems. Cooper finds himself caught in a cat-and-mouse game with a clever FBI profiler who is determined to win.

What We Think: M. Night is back, baby! Unfortunately, he’s also back on his usual nonsense. This is a muddled mess—a vanity project seemingly designed to launch M. Night’s daughter into stardom. Unfortunately, when weighed against Josh Hartnett’s maniacal and fun performance, the younger Shyamalan’s lack of acting ability is painfully obvious. Nepotism is alive and well here. The transition from the first to the third act completely loses me. The second act feels out of place, and as we descend into the finale, nothing feels earned or cohesive.

I will give M. Night this: he’s crafted an engaging concept. It’s just the execution that’s lacking. That said, Josh Hartnett is absolutely delivering. After his brilliant return in last year’s Best Picture winner Oppenheimer, it’s great to see him back in films.

Our Grade: C-, Nah. That was my honest-to-Satan reaction to the ending of this movie. Shyamalan, as he often does, gets a little too clever for his own good. The result is a film that somehow manages to do both too much and not enough. It throws a lot at the narrative but never sets any of it up properly, nor does it pay off the few things it does establish. Skip this one. It features one of the dumbest twists of the year, yet somehow still ranks as middle-of-the-road in Shyamalan’s filmography.