dual personalities

Last weekend, as you know, I was planning to watch John Ford movies in honor of his birthday. I watched How Green Was My Valley (1941) and Fort Apache (1948) and enjoyed both immensely.

But for a change of pace, I  also watched Split (2016) starring James McAvoy and written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, who you may have heard, is in the middle of a huge career comeback.

The plot is basically: three girls are kidnapped by a man with 23 diagnosed distinct personalities. “They must try to escape before the apparent emergence of a frightful new 24th.” James McAvoy plays the guy with DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder) and he is very impressive. I mean really. Why was he not nominated for an Academy Award? Good grief, I don’t know.

Anyway, it is a sequel to Unbreakable (2000).

Shyamalan made it on a shoestring ($10M) using his own money. It did great and the sequel Glass (2019)–also made for a mere $20M–has been #1 for three weeks. This pleases me, as it demonstrates that you do  not have to spend a boatload of money to make a good movie. It is the story/script that is most important and not the CG histrionics.

It is an interesting story and not overly scary/weird/gross/and or violent. I liked it, so I recommend it.

Also please note that it is 31 days of Oscar on TCM and they are showing a lot of good movies. Time to set your DVR! The schedule is here.

*The Beast, Split (2016)