The Visit Review

The creep de factor---Deanna Dunagan as one of a set of grandparents who seem to be off their rockers in The Visit

                          Roger Ebert once said "It's rare to find a film that goes for broke and says to hell with the consequences." The Visit is a film that does exactly this. However, looking at the writer-director, M Night Shyamalan, it only makes sense that this film go for broke. After a slew of miserable failures (Lady In The Water, The Village, The Happening, The Last Airbender, After Earth,) it seems Mr. Shyamalan has nothing to lose. So with money out of his own pocket, he has made The Visit, a horror-comedy similar to last year's Kevin Smith-directed flop Tusk. Except for the fact that this film will most likely be a hit, the two films are really quite the same. Both feature an extremely uneasy mix of horror and comedy. Both have images that I wish I could un-see. Both feature creepy old people. Last but not least, both are films I didn't really enjoy while I was watching them but that I have to applaud for their ballsiness and for the fact that I will most likely never go a day of my life without thinking about them. Hell, Tusk came out last year in September and I still haven't gone a day without thinking about it. Perhaps this is because both Shyamalan and Smith were able to understand that the creepiest things are events that could potentially happen to anyone. In this age of paranormal/other worldly horror films, that's an important lesson to keep in mind. Back to just The Visit.  

                          The film stars Ed Oxenbould and Olivia DeJonge as Tyler and Becca, a brother and sister whose mother (Kathryn Hahn) needs to spend time with her new boyfriend. Tyler and Becca happily agree to stay with their grandparents for a week to give Mom and boyfriend some time to themselves. However, upon arriving at their house, Tyler and Becca realize that Nana (Deanna Dunagan) and Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie) are creepy. Not just "old people acting strange" creepy but demonically possessed creepy. Pop Pop advises the kids to stay in their room once 9:30 PM strikes but they must find out what the big deal is. As the week goes on, things keep getting weirder and weirder.

                           Shyamalan has found five terrific actors in its mostly unknown cast. Hahn is a recognizable supporting face and had what I thought was a breakout lead role in the sadly little seen Afternoon Delight while McRobbie has been acting in various projects for a while. Meanwhile, Oxenbould did star in last year's dismal Alexander And The Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day. However, none of these are household names and the fact that you can buy  them as these people more because of it makes it all the creepier. In that way, it reminded me of this year's Unfriended, another horror film that worked because of the unknown cast. McRobbie and Dunagan perfectly portray old people who don't quite confirm whether they're dangerous or just old. Perhaps the creepiest thing in the film is the sight of Dunagan's butt, which is shown more than once and is never pleasant. Meanwhile, Oxenbould provides some very funny comic relief as the little brother with a love for hip hop and DeJonge is terrific as the curious older sister.

                               Shyamalan also uses a creative way to integrate the increasingly tired found footage concept into the action. Becca is an inspiring filmmaker who hopes to make a documentary for her mother, complete with Nana and Pop Pop forgiving Mom on camera. This makes it reasonable that Becca and Tyler would both be filming everything. 

                                 There are both some genuine scares and guffaws within the film. However, I often feel like Shyamalan doesn't mix them exactly right. There are moments where it's supposed to be creepy and there would be something funny that would happen which ruined the mood for me and vice versa. As well, I don't think that the kids are as funny or charming as the film thinks they are. Sure, Oxenbould gains a few hearty laughs from the audience and he and DeJonge are likable enough actors and do really well in their roles. However, the film seems to think they're the best kids ever  with an admittedly refreshing and nice to see mother who loves them to death and forced sentimentality to boot. 

                              

                                   The twist, though. I will not begin to give anyway anything about the twist. However, I will say the twist is unexpected and extremely solid when taken at face value. Everyone expects a twist ending from Shyamalan at this point but he packs a wallop with this one. With that being said, if you start picking it apart piece by piece and trying to find out why it doesn't make sense, you'll pass with flying colors. Shyamalan does leave plenty of clues of why it does make some sense, however. My other complaint about the twist is that it improves the film so much I only wish it was introduced halfway through the film rather than in the last 20 or so minutes. It changes the whole vibe of the film and really lets things pick up. I imagine not only the twist but the film is general being made into a darker, grittier, R rated film and it may have worked much better.

                                       I can't quite bring myself to recommend The Visit. It has too many rough patches and uneven tone switches to really make it a must see. However, it does show that Shyamalan can still care about a film and it provides  a step in the right direction for him. If you want to see his true comeback, wait perhaps two years from now where he may be back in all his glory. If you're absolutely desperate to see something halfway decent from him, check this out at the cheapest price possible.

(2 and 1/2 out of 5 Stars, The film is rated PG-13 for disturbing thematic material including terror, violence and some nudity, and for brief language)