Gareth Vaughan

It could have been so good, if it was longer with better crafted dialogue and character development. For me, The Happening is easily one of the most baffling disappointments in the early to mid 2000's. On paper, it had everything going for it: M. Night Shyamalan directing, a unique high-concept premise, and a strong cast led by Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel. In reality, it’s a masterclass in how not to deliver suspense. To start! The dialogue is painfully stilted, often sounding like it was written in one draft and never revised? Characters react to catastrophic events with wooden performances that are more laughable than alarming. Wahlberg in particular seems lost, and his line delivery has become infamous for all the wrong reasons. The film never builds genuine tension—it lurches from one awkward scene to another, leaning on absurd explanations that feel like parody rather than mystery. The central idea—nature striking back against humanity—is intriguing, but it’s buried under clumsy execution, bizarre tonal shifts, and unintentional comedy. What could have been a chilling eco-thriller ends up being a dull, laughably bad experience that’s remembered more as a meme than as a movie. If you’re looking for genuine thrills, look elsewhere. If you’re in the mood to cringe and laugh at how wrong a film can go, The Happening might be unintentionally entertaining. Otherwise, it’s one of Shyamalan’s weakest and most frustrating works.