THE VISIT: SHYAMALAN STRIKES AGAIN

It wasn’t all that long ago when an unknown director by the name of M. Night Shyamalan became the go to guy for horror after the release of THE SIXTH SENSE. Since that time he’s directed many more films that have been praised or demonized but that have never been boring. With the release of THE VISIT Shyamalan once again returns to his horror roots and does so with a vengeance.

The film opens with a young mother played by Kathryn Hahn about to send her two children, Becca (Olivia DeJonge) and Tyler (Ed Oxenbould), to spend the week with her parents. The occasion is a mending of sorts since she hasn’t seen nor spoken to her parents in over 15 years, their parting a fight that was never settled. The man she left for has abandoned her and the children, her parents were proven right and now they’ve reached out to her over the internet to try and mend fences. Mom is off to a cruise with her new boyfriend and the kids are off to meet the grandparents for the first time.

All of this is being shot by budding film maker Becca. Yes, this is one of those point of view films I’m not fond of but here it works. The trip by train to their grandparent’s house gives us a chance to see just who Becca and Tyler are. When they arrive they find their grandparents waiting, sign in hand to be recognized, and off they go.

Things seem to be going smoothly until night time. A noise outside their room prompts the kids to open the door to see what’s going on. It’s the first sign that something isn’t right as they see grandma running around on all fours. The next day they are told by grandpa that she has episodes and that it would be best for them to not open the door after their 9PM bed time.

The days pass, the kids stay in touch with mom via skype on their laptop and more odd things happen. With each one the viewer begins to wonder of these grandparents are slowly devolving into insanity or if it’s just old age catching up with them. Then again perhaps it’s just that they’re not used to having kids around. As the story moves forward Becca continues to film their daily events as does Tyler with Becca’s back up camera. With each item they film, as different odd things begin to happen, both children begin to wonder if they are safe or not. By the time they make the decision of what to do it may be too late.

One thing about a Shyamalan movie is that in describing it you find yourself at odds about just how much to give away. He’s great at surprises and twisting even those surprises into something you don’t expect. Trailers for this film made it obvious that something wrong was at play here but just what is it? What could be the big secret here? Are the adults going insane? Is it just the grandparents or is it this area? Are they creatures, monsters, vampires? Or are they just getting old?

All is answered by the end of the film and in the most satisfying of ways possible. It’s not so much the answer that makes this film as interesting and scary as it is but the trip the viewer travels to get to that point. When the kids are talking into the camera you’re on edge wondering if someone is going to come up behind them while they speak. You’re never quite sure where the safe places are in the house when they travel from room to room. When grandma talks about aliens as Becca interviews her you start to wonder could she be one or is she just losing her mind? The guessing game begins when the kids arrive and doesn’t stop until the end.

The two young actors featured here make this movie work extremely well. Becca’s attempt to be a film maker set up the point of view documentation of what is going on work as opposed to any number of “found footage” films that haven’t done so. The combination of childish spying, youngsters interviewing their grandparents and horsing around for the camera make it all seem natural. When it is eventually used to help light the way it makes it scarier still. But the only way to make these two young actors believable is to have them met by the adults in the film as well. Deanna Dunagan as Nana and Peter McRobbie as Pop Pop match the children in what seems like a harmless older couple that turns into someone they kids are unsure of when it comes to safety.

This movie works on all levels and having watched it twice now I can attest to the creepiness factor on display here. Even knowing what is coming the movie still has you jump when those times come and cringe as things happen you know are on the way. Your skin crawls, you find yourself screaming at the screen for the children to be careful and you hope for the best until the credits roll. Before that happens the emotional levels you feel will rise and fall and once again M. Night Shyamalan will be hailed as someone who knows what the word horror means.

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