★★ | The title did warn us
Trap is a film of many successes, and just as many failures. It has a superb first half that is as impressive as anything M. Night Shyamalan has made in the past. The fact that an odd, non-IP thriller is even in theaters in this day and age is a minor miracle itself. If the film was a good half-hour shorter, it would easily be among Shyamalan’s finest. But it isn’t, and it isn’t.
The first half, set inside a crowded sports arena during a pop concert, is exceptionally strong. Shyamalan builds the concrete hell into its own world with intricate detail. By the time the show starts, he envelops us into the paranoia and tension beautifully. Cooper (Josh Hartnett) plays a serial killer known as The Butcher. He’s also a dad taking his little girl to a concert of Lady Raven (Saleka Shyamalan). Only this concert is an elaborate, Rube Goldbergian ruse created solely to trap Cooper. He has until the end of the concert to find a way out, or risk capture and death.
As far as setups go, it’s a great one. It doesn’t make a lot of sense if you stop and think about it, but that doesn’t matter. Shyamalan is at his best thinking outside the box. His high concept stories are the closest thing we have to the heyday of Simpson/Bruckheimer films today. Combine that with his innate world building capabilities, and for the first 40 minutes or so, Trap soars.
Hartnett deserves much of the praise as well. He channels his easygoing charm into Cooper and creates a terrifying, yet oddly endearing villain in the process. We know we shouldn’t want him to get away with anything, yet it’s hard to resist the temptation. It’s a wonderful balancing act that tricks the audience to ignore their better selves.
Watch, for example, how Hartnett’s carefully practiced mannerisms chip away as his options vanish. His smile is a little bit more crooked, his nuanced pitch cracks, and every movement is a little bit rougher. It’s a great performance from an underrated actor, one that elevates the film at every turn.
Sadly, the rest of the cast isn’t quite up to the task. While Alison Pill saves the day in a bravura performance, everyone else feels adrift. Saleka is fine on stage, and her music is catchy to boot, but put against Hartnett in difficult scenes and her lack of experience is visible. She’s not bad, but this is the deep end of the pool, any newcomer will struggle here.
The lackluster second half highlights these issues further. Once Shyamalan runs out of reasons for Cooper to be in the arena, the film falls apart. It takes on an Idiot Plot, meaning everything that happens must happen because everyone acts in a way befitting an idiot. I tried holding onto my good will, especially after accepting the wild concept in the first place. But after the fifth contrivance in as many minutes, I felt bucked off this merry-go-round.
Shyamalan is still a great filmmaker. He has crafted some of my favorite films of the 2000s, and I firmly believe there’s a better, more coherent edit of Trap somewhere. This isn’t it, but you can see the outline if you look close enough.