| Old (2021) | |
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Rating: 5.8/10 (159,007 votes) Director: M. Night Shyamalan Writer: M. Night Shyamalan, Pierre-Oscar Lévy, Frederik Peeters Stars: Gael García Bernal, Vicky Krieps, Rufus Sewell Runtime: 108 min Rated: PG-13 Genre: Drama, Horror, Mystery Released: 23 Jul 2021 |
| Plot: A vacationing family discovers that the secluded beach where they're relaxing for a few hours is somehow causing them to age rapidly, reducing their entire lives into a single day. | |
M Night’s films definitely split the audience, but he’s a name that will always interest me, and in recent years – free from the shackles of blockbuster Hollywood – he has been carving his own stories in his own way, for good or for bad.
Old is an adaptation of a graphic novel named Sandcastle, and focusses on a paradise island in which a group of vacationers are sunning. When they are offered a chance to visit a secret beach, they take it up and find an idyllic, tranquil place to relax….until a dead body washes up, and they find that they can’t leave. Then they notice the kids begin to age rapidly…..
Positives first – the cast are great, and nobody overplays the role. Each of them plays very naturally, making the surreal mystery very grounded. Gael Garcia Bernal’s husband who is coming to terms with his wife’s illness and her affair is our initial focus, and Rufus Sewell’s bigotted doctor suffering from schizophrenia is a chilling internal menace to the group.
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However, since he has full control, it appears M Night needs someone to tell him when to cut back, when to show not tell, and when to end a film. There are plenty of moments that could have been excised from the film without upsetting the tale – and even after showing something, he feels the need to have characters explain it…a lot. Exposition bogs it down a bit – although you could forgive it as being consistent with the confusion of the characters, who would naturally repeat thoughts as they try to work out what is happening.
The reveal of the mystery works, but the film chooses to stick around for about 5 minutes longer than it needs to in order to hammer home what was already pretty evident to the viewer.
All in all, Old is a solid concept, and has a lot going for it, but the execution lets it down a little.
