VOICE OVER: Rebecca Brayton Best known for his horror films and twist endings, he has made a name for himself as a modern day Alfred Hitchcock. Despite earning Hollywood over a billion dollars in box-office revenue, he's come under intense criticism for his over-use of twist endings, fragile films that cannot stand-up to outside logic, and various ego-fueling cameos within his films. Despite this, he is arguably one of Hollywood's most reputable authors and has been credited for faithfully adapting 'The Last Airbender' to the silver screen. In this video, http://www.WatchMojo.com takes a look at the career of writer and director M. Night Shyamalan.
M. Night Shyamalan: From Suspense Thriller to Action-Fantasy Director
He’s known for his twist endings and masterful screen direction. Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’re taking a look at the career of writer and director M. Night Shyamalan.
Born August 6th, 1970 in Pondicherry, India he was quickly relocated by family to Penn Valley, Pennsylvania. There he went on to attend a Catholic School before studying film at New York University’s Tisch School of Arts.
His passion for film developed as a result of being given a super-8 camcorder in his youth. And by the age of 17 he had already made over 45 short films in his spare time, before pursuing his dream of becoming a professional filmmaker. To accomplish this he borrowed money from friends and family to produce the 1992 semi-autobiographical drama “Praying with Anger”, in which he starred in the title role of a young man returning to India to explore his heritage.
Several years later he wrote and directed first major feature film “Wide Awake.” Starring Rosie O’Donnell, the comedy-drama focused on a ten-year-old catholic schoolboy who searched for god following the death of his grandfather. Despite being a major commercial flop, it succeeded in setting the stylistic groundwork for his many projects to come.
As a result, his next feature “The Sixth Sense” made better use of a supernatural sub-plot and shocked audiences with its iconic twist ending. Miraculously, the film not only became a cinematic phenomenon, but made 600 million dollars on a very modest 40 million dollar budget, and was nominated for 6 Academy awards. Plus, the creepy tale of a boy who sees dead people became a part of popular culture and made Shyamalan a well-known Hollywood director overnight.
Next, he created the superhero drama “Unbreakable.” Again starring Bruce Willis, the film told the tale of a sole survivor of a train crash who discovered that he had the superpower of invincibility. While a great film, it failed to recapture the success of its predecessor.
Unfazed, Shyamalan then tackled alien subject matter with his sci-fi drama set in Rural Pennsylvania. This time, the feature starred Mel Gibson as a priest who had lost his faith, yet regains it during an alien invasion. Notable for its sense of atmosphere and music, "Signs" cleaned up at the box office.
Two years later he released his monster movie, “The Village” starring Joaquin Phoenix. Despite turning a profit, it was largely considered a commercial and critical failure. And at this point his use of the twist ending had given him a reputation as a one trick filmmaker.
Fearing being typecast, he released 2006`s “Lady In The Water” starring Paul Giamatti. Ditching his signature twist, it conveyed a fairy tale plot about a Water Nymph searching for an author who would change the world. Shyamalan`s self-indulgent self-casting caused critics to dismiss him as a crackpot, and caused the film to receive four Golden Raspberry Awards for worst picture, director, screenplay and supporting actor.
The following year he received a lot of attention for creating his first R-rated film “The Happening.” Generating big bucks, it continued the trend of disappointing critics and long-time fans who didn`t dig its killer plant plot.
Switching gears, the director helmed the highly anticipated live-action adaptation of the nickelodian cartoon series “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” Taking himself out of the increasingly negative genre-series that he had popularized, the director showed that he can create a spectacle that relies more on mythology and action, then twist endings and chills.
