Visual storytelling is such a powerful tool that can evoke laughter, sentiment, and the feeling of terror in an audience’s mind. Especially when it’s a horror or thriller film, it can immerse a group of audience into a rollercoaster ride of fear and suspense. M. Night. Shyamalan is known for his ability to play with terror or suspense through his storytelling. “The Sixth Sense” (1999) or “Split” (2016) are some notable and brilliant horror films of his career that have been critically acclaimed, although some of his early works and even the recent ones are terrible to watch and tolerate on screen. One of these messes he created early in his career is 2008’s horror/survival thriller “The Happening” (2008) starring Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel.
“The Happening” deals with a natural crisis that’s killing humans and showcasing the absurdity of human existence. Shyamalan tries to create tension and confusion around the plot and character dilemmas. Still, despite all the efforts, the lack of conviction in the situation’s portrayal and the occasional comical approach in the storytelling fail to leave a mark in our minds. Let’s dive deeply into the story to learn what’s “happening” in the film.
The Happening (2008) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
The story unfolds on a sunny morning in Central Park, New York, where a group of people are affected by a toxin gas released into the air by the plants. The poisonous gas affects people’s cognitive ability and makes them feel confused and distant, eventually leading them to kill themselves. The story mainly revolves around a science teacher, Elliot Moore (played by Mark Wahlberg), his wife Alma (Zooey Deschanel), and a few others who try to escape from this disastrous situation in their hometown in Philadelphia. Elliot’s colleague and closest friend Julian (John Leguizamo) also accompanies him, taking his little daughter Jess along. Still, the situation grows more intense, making it impossible for them to run away so quickly.
What is the reason behind the mass suicide?
The natural disaster in “The Happening” is eerie and complex to explain because it’s invisible and ambiguous throughout the story. The plants are supposedly responsible for these catastrophic events, as they emit a harmful neurotoxin that alters the brain function of human beings. The neurotoxin directly influences people’s cognitive ability, disrupting their ability to preserve. The first signs or symptoms of this event are confusion and loss of memory, but it doesn’t take much time to affect fatally. Soon, the affected individuals lose their cognitive power and their will to live, causing them to take themselves out brutally. The disaster is never explicitly mentioned throughout the film, even though many speculations and theories emerge throughout the story.
Elliot, being a science teacher himself, tries to find a logical reason and explains to his wife that this neurotoxin affects human beings following a gush of wind. He concludes that this toxin can only harm people in a large group, so it’s better to divide into small groups to survive this threat. However, Elliot’s theory is later proved wrong when the neurotoxin kills an older woman alone standing in her garden. No amount of theories or logic can define the source, cause, or remedy of this threatening situation in the film.
How will Elliot and Alma cope with Julian’s death and the challenges of raising Jess?
Elliot and Alma have been married for a long time, but they face some troubles in their relationship. Alma is more reserved and doesn’t like expressing her emotions or communicating with her partner about her problems. Alma has gone out with a friend but feels guilty about not saying that to her husband earlier. As she finally talks to Elliot, a misunderstanding and tension arise between the couple. The long-term communication gap between Elliot and Alma is apparent even to Julian, who likes to address it sometimes but to no avail. Elliot doesn’t want to bring these things up, especially amid a life-threatening situation.
When Elliot and Alma join Julian and his daughter in leaving Philadelphia, they finally find a helping hand who agrees to take them out of the city. However, Julian cannot join them on the way out as he has to return to the town where his wife is headed. Julian asks Elliot to take Jess and care for the little girl. Julian knows there’s no certainty that he will come back alive, so bearing hope, he heads back to get his wife. Unfortunately, on his way, he’s affected by the neurotoxin and stabs himself to death.
The Happening (2008) Movie Ending Explained:
How will Elliot and Alma overcome the dangers of the neurotoxin and reunite?
On the other hand, Elliot and Alma take care of Jess as their own daughter and never let her out of their sight. Meanwhile, Elliot befriends two young boys who are also running away from this trouble to survive. Backed with those boys, Elliot finds a house where he expects to have some food and a place to spend the night. Unfortunately, a group of overly suspicious survivors with weapons kill those young boys and scare Elliot and Alma off their property. Finally, Elliot, Alma, and Jess find a mansion owned by an old lady who seems shady and rude. The lady offers them a supper and her place to stay, but she is also driven by paranoia.
She constantly accuses Elliot of being a thief and murderer, thinking that he might have come to her place to kill her. The following day, when Elliot tries his best to convince her that he’s a harmless guy, the lady doesn’t trust his words. However, as she walks out of her mansion, a gush of wind carrying the neurotoxin affects her, causing her to kill herself horrifically. Elliot cannot move outside because of the toxin but discovers his wife Alma and Jess are not in this mansion. They are in a nearby shack, where they get stuck because of the harmful toxin outside. Elliot asks them to stay where they are and continues communicating with them with the help of a duct connecting these two places.
Will Elliot and Alma find a safe haven?
While stuck in the old lady’s mansion, Elliot feels isolated and disconnected from his family. On the other hand, Alma also feels stuck and anxious because she worries more about that little girl, Jess, than herself. However, Elliot and Alma try to avoid all the misunderstandings and talk it out in this situation. They remember some of the happiest moments of their life and realize that they still love each other as always. Realizing that death is knocking at their door, both Elliot and Alma accept their impending fate and decide to go out of the mansion to bid each other farewell for good. But, surprisingly, as they come outside, the gush of wind stops suddenly, making the whole environment as normal as it was before.
The Happening (2008) Movie Themes Analysed:
“The Happening” is all about the absurdity and inscrutability of life, which is beyond our knowledge and understanding. The natural disaster depicted in the film is an unexplainable phenomenon that any logic in the end can not define. The catastrophe starts all of a sudden, and it stops without any intervention from humanity. However, this catastrophic event can be seen as a natural warning to humanity. Humans have been oppressing natural elements for ages.
From deforestation to the extinction of multiple species, the balance of our ecosystem has been affected. This natural catastrophe caused by plants may be a warning message to humans. Our nature’s forgiveness has encouraged people to commit more atrocities, so this time, it acts against human beings, hoping for a change. If people don’t stop their unjust actions against nature soon, they may quickly see more horrible forms of natural calamities. Moreover, the film also deals with the human connection depicted through Elliot and Alma’s relationship amid this threatening time. The way they reconcile with each other and reunite conveys the necessity of love and unity even amid danger.
How does everything suddenly go back to normal?
“The Happening” doesn’t explicitly mention why the natural disaster suddenly stops in the northeastern part of the United States. The scientists and experts are as clueless as ordinary people. However, Alma and Elliot adopt Jess at the end of the film. Probably, the little girl will never be able to meet her mother anymore, as she couldn’t have survived the threat. Ultimately, Alma becomes pregnant as she takes a test and informs Elliot about the good news. The northeast part of the United States is free from this natural threat. Still, unfortunately, a similar event takes place in France, where on a sunny morning, a group of tourists are suddenly affected by this poisonous air, causing them to pause and kill themselves.
“The Happening” is a good attempt at making a survival thriller, but the most unsalvageable part of this film is the monotonous storytelling that doesn’t work at all. The narrative is supposed to create a more eerie atmosphere but sometimes becomes cringe and inane. However, if you are interested in following Shyamalan’s filmography and want to know how great a filmmaker he is, watch “Unbreakable,” released in 2000, starring Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson. It is one of the most underrated thrillers directed by M. Night Shyamalan. Remember, every filmmaker has their best and worst creations on their list, and “The Happening” is in the latter category. However, let’s not judge Shyamalan for making this film; instead, watch some of the movies mentioned above, which would define Shyamalan’s career as a filmmaker.
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