To me, this one sticks out in as being the movie that verified that the public had officially turned on M. Night Shyamalan. I remember hearing multiple stories of the preview showing in theaters, proudly announcing "From the Mind of M. Night Shyamalan" and people openly laughing/booing or just disparaging him in general. So perhaps it was a bit presumptuous to think this was going to springboard us into a series of M. Night produced thrillers - knowing that nothing else has come out 4 years down the line, it does make the "Night Chronicles 1" logo at the beginning seem a bit silly. (thenightchronicles.com advertises Devil and something called "Reincarnate," slated to shoot in 2011. I don't think it's out yet.) To be fair, this is *not* an M. Night Shyamalan jam (it's just "From His Mind") - this one is well-directed by John Dowdle.
But honestly, if Devil is any indication I certainly wouldn't mind if we got to see future "Night Chronicle" installments. It's not super-flashy, but it's a solid little thriller that has some moments of genuine creepiness.
The general story is "five strangers trapped in an elevator. One of them is the Devil." Being trapped isn't as much the issue as the escalating violence that happens while they're stuck. And yeah, one of them is the Devil, but there is never really a compelling case for *why* he needs to be in the elevator - one would assume he could wreak havoc from anywhere (say, the lobby or the men's room). But it's not a one-location/small cast film. We get to spend some quality time with the emergency responders and security guards who are trying to help them out of the elevator as well.
What I liked
Most of the violence takes place in the dark - apparently, controlling the lights is one of the Devil's many dark powers. As in, everyone is cool, the lights go out, the shit goes down, and when the lights come back up someone is maimed/stabbed/whatever. Ever since Blair Witch, I've liked it when movies establish a defined period of safety followed by a defined period of danger (in Blair's case, you feel safe during the day and terrified whenever night falls). Here it's as simple as lights-on/lights-off. It's a little more unpredictable than night/day, but it works in the same way. It's also a sly way of keeping things PG-13 - you actually see very little blood being shed.
Also, being trapped is an interesting concept in that the characters really only have each other to bounce off of. Being (literally) in the dark about who is the real evil-doer, our strangers have little to go on other than stereotypes (age/race/gender) of each other, which actually brings a little more depth to proceedings than than I would have expected.
Dowdle manages to keep things visually interesting too - despite a majority of the movie being in an elevator car, the camera moves around a lot and shoots the action from a number of different angles. It could stand to be a bit more claustrophobic, but it isn't visually boring.
There are a couple of genuinely unnerving moments too. When there is a disruption in the elevator video feed and a scary face appears for a frame or two, I was legitimately creeped out. This "casual-surprise reveal" is one of my favorite Shyamalan-isms. As a comparison: I remember being *super* freaked out the first time the alien shows up in the birthday home video in Signs. It's the exact opposite of freaky when you know it's coming, but they're great shots the first-time around.
What I didn't like
The story wanes a bit when we get outside of the elevator. We're mostly out there with Detective Bowden, the officer that responds to the first assault in the darkened elevator car. Bowden is introduced as a man battling his own demons - he's a recovering alcoholic, trying to cope with the loss of his wife/child in a hit-and-run accident. It's not that his story is boring, or even bad, but it just over complicates things. Just the Devil is enough for me, thank you very much.
I mean, his story is important as it pertains to the *SPOILER* final twist. But the twist/coincidence is just unnecessary - like there had to be something twisty since it's got Shyamalan's name attached to it. But it feels way too forced, and ends up making the Devil seem like He was kind of out for justice (and maybe kill a few people) the whole time. I think "un-twist" would have been a good way to go - since everyone would be expecting something, just play it as straightforward as possible.
The devices used to tell the Devil's story are a bit awkward as well. There is a narrator, who as far as I could remember remained un-named. There is also a security guard who basically tells the story of the Devil and how he messes with people (basically as a folktale that had been in his family for generations). Good thing the atheist security guard wasn't working that day! It is explained as "The Devil chose us as his audience," but it could also be explained as "we need some exposition so people can understand this movie."
Random asides
I watched this on Netflix Instant. As soon as the credit started to roll they cut to what else I would like (which I kind of hate - I want to see the credits! They should at least give you a choice...) I get a kick out of whatever algorithm Netflix uses to recommend movies - it was all elevator movies for me. As if anyone has ever said to themselves "I'm really in the mood for something with an elevator," or "I like Horror, Action, and Elevator movies."
Ultimately...
I enjoyed Devil. It was pretty solid for what was obviously made as a mainstream horror flick. For every unearned jump scare/musical-sting there was a genuinely unsettling visual or moments of strong character-based horror. Well done for five people in an elevator.
I would recommend this film
Until next time...
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