Sixth Sense creator M. Night Shyamalan veers into ecological paranoia on his latest scary movie The Happening. He talks to Michele Manelis
KEY POINTS:
If An Inconvenient Truth made you nervous, M. Night Shyamalan's global warming fearfest is sure to create staunch environmentalists out of gas-guzzling SUV drivers in his upcoming movie, The Happening.
The writer-director who coined the phrase, "I see dead people," in his 1999 hit The Sixth Sense (which grossed US$294 million in the US and Canada alone), eclipses his fatality rate in this blood-and-guts vehicle starring Mark Wahlberg, in which nature runs amok, punishing us for our neglect over the last few decades. And Shyamalan castigates us for our eco-sins with a heavy hand.
Associated with all things supernatural, Shyamalan's previous work includes: Unbreakable, The Village, Signs, and his most recent, the poorly received, Lady in the Water. He ventures into R-rated terrain in his new movie, budgeted at $55 million, and promises big chills and thrills. That is, if you believe the marketing.
The 37-year-old Indian-born director who has a much-hyped reputation for twists and turns, carries this mantle like unwanted baggage, whilst at the same time, it's that expectation that attracts bums-on-seats.
"Not all my movies have twist endings. Three of them did, three of them didn't - but everyone expects that of me now. I wish I could put someone else's name on the script and try to sneak it in and then people would just watch the movie for the movie's sake alone," he says, referring to recent articles in the US press stating that given his spotty track record of late, The Happening is a make-or-break situation for his career.
"First of all, these newspapers should leave the storytelling to us. They should use facts alone," he says "Everyone knows I already have my next film lined up for Paramount [Avatar: The Last Airbender]. Expectations are troubling but I don't let it put pressure on me because it's unfair and ridiculous. None of my movies have lost money. (In total they have raked in US1.7 billion worldwide). They've all been mid-range budgets but have been marketed like blockbusters, but that was not my intention."
He says his new film was made akin to a B movie. "The Happening is a clear paranoia experience. I wanted it to be like The Birds. It was never meant to have twists and turns. It's not that kind of movie," he bristles.
Having experienced the highs and lows of Hollywood, he says of his so called box office failures, "Everywhere I go now people talk to me about The Village. And I think,'Where were you when this movie opened?" he laughs. "I'm happy they're enjoying success on DVD and that they can been seen as a movie and appreciated in that way. It gives me hope that you can do things of integrity, but you have to realise they come out into the world and they go through a matrix process. It's a strange balancing act."
Wahlberg says when he was approached to star in The Happening, "Night described this movie as Kramer Vs Kramer meets The Birds. I read it, and I don't get offered much, so I weighed the pros and cons and there was no downside. Some people have said to me, 'What about Lady in the Water?' and I said, 'Night has made some great films and this is a great script. He's one of the few people in Hollywood that really has a unique vision."
The Happening, with its heavy environmental message is very much a contemporary story. "In 2008 there is a paranoia that exists. We're scared to let our kids play in the backyard in case they get snatched. Although there are no stats that says it's more likely to happen these days we're all a lot more scared than when I was a kid and we all played in the backyard. We've blown up the things we're scared of and it's become huge monsters in our mind," he says.
But the environment and all its problems are definitely not a figment of our imagination. He pauses. "I'm careful to make sure this is not a message movie. Yes, it says something meaningful, but as filmmakers we went at it as just a fun ride. But again, there are people who don't believe in global warming as a fact. It's very clear it should be taught in every classroom everywhere so at least the next generation doesn't do what the previous generation did and won't eat up the planet."
Shyamalan is unique in generating his own brand of fear, and his inspiration is derived from basic human needs. "I think everybody's fear comes from the same place. That is the fear of being alone. Feeling alone. When you're a baby it's in your genetics. You wake up and you don't see anyone, you cry and comfort comes in the shape of your mother or father. As an adult, you get the job offer in Minnesota and you're scared that you're going to be alone, not physically, but emotionally. You won't relate to anyone, no one will be feeling what you're feeling, so you'll be isolated. You'll feel fear."
And speaking of fear, what scares this famed fear-monger? That maybe people won't come to his movies anymore? He smiles. "I don't know about that. You always feel precious about all of your movies and the things that people say, I don't feel that kind of fear. Like, will they still love me?" he laughs. "That just doesn't enter my head."
LOWDOWN
Who: M. Night Shyamalan, writer-director
Born: August 6,1970, Mahé, Pondicherry, India
Films: Praying with Anger (1992), Wide Awake (1998), The Sixth Sense (1999), Unbreakable (2000), Signs (2002), The Village (2004), Lady in the Water (2006); and The Happening (2008)
