Josh Hartnett Shines in M. Night Shyamalan’s Wild Thriller ‘Trap’ – Review

Trap is now playing in theaters.

While M. Night Shyamalan’s movies tend to be divisive, to say the least, the thrill of the premise is typically enough to pique curiosity. Whether it’s a beach that makes the characters rapidly age or a visit to grandparents gone horribly wrong, we can at least give Shyamalan credit for being full of ideas. ‘Trap is the latest in a line of movies sold on its fun set-up, resulting in a messy, funny, and exciting ride.

‘Trap’ begins with goofy dad Cooper Adams (Josh Hartnett) arriving at a concert with his daughter, Riley (Ariel Donoghue), to see headliner Lady Raven (portrayed by Shyamalan’s own daughter, Saleka Shyamalan). Security is heavily beefed up at the arena with the FBI trying to catch a serial killer referred to as ‘The Butcher’, which is quickly revealed to be Cooper.

‘Trap’ has one of the most fascinating trailers this year, with many moviegoers accusing it of revealing too much. The exposure of Cooper as a loving dad who moonlights as a serial killer is treated as its own Shyamalan-esque twist in the trailer, but this information is shared with audiences early in the film. What follows is a game of cat and mouse that continuously escalates. While many of the events in the film are clearly outrageous and preposterous, Shyamalan is undoubtedly having fun here and wants audiences to have a great time too.

While in ‘dad-mode,’ Hartnett gives Cooper an ‘aw shucks’ attitude with a hefty dose of dad jokes.

The dad persona is over-the-top and initially distracting, but when Hartnett transitions into his diabolical killer persona, it’s understandable why the contrasting nice mannerisms feel so performative. It’s a very fun and silly performance, and the film wouldn’t work without it.

Credit goes to Shyamalan, who really nailed the feeling of being in a sporting or concert venue, cleverly incorporating concessions, food service, security, and backstage access into the plot. Again, many of these aspects are far-fetched, but the movie has enough fun and plenty of suspense that it’s hard to imagine many will actually care too much. The film goes even more off-the-rails outside of the arena, but the escalation of tension works regardless.

Verdict

I give ‘Trap’ 3.5 out of of 5 stars. It is far from a perfect masterpiece but an extremely fun and silly time at the movies. A committed Hartnett performance combined with quick pacing and reliable direction is enough to overcome the leaps that the writing takes.

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