Unbreakable (2000): A well-directed, well-acted, original, dramatic, intense, severely underrated "comic book" thriller that holds up pretty well! Arguably Shyamalan's best!

In our modern society where superhero movies are dominating pop culture, box office sales, and the entertainment industry, there are a select number of films that can stand the test of time for future generations (Superman The Movie, The Dark Knight Trilogy, The Incredibles, Logan, Civil War, Iron Man, etc).

Unbreakable is one of those select films, which unfortunately is often overlooked in favor of more mainstream comic-book adaptations. The premise is that a man named David Dunn (played Bruce Willis) has just survived a deadly train crash, in which he is the sole survivor without any bones broken. He is later approached by the mysterious Elijah (played by Samuel L Jackson) who reveals how he survived, The film tells the story of David discovering his identity as a superhero + how this discovery affects his interactions with his family, society, and Elijah.

The film's unique premise is anchored by its clever writing and themes of identity + good vs evil. Majority of the film is devoted to important dialogue scenes and conversations between the main characters about having to accepting one's identity and how to move on with life knowing such a discovery. This creates good dramatic tension between the characters, leading up to a gripping final twist.

One of the things I love about Unbreakable is that it is not like your typical superhero film, where someone is magically given powers from a failed science experiment and has to fight a super evil bad guy. Instead, this film ditches the typical tropes of a basic comic-book movie for the sake of exploring the psyche of a superhero, what their motivations are, and the connections they have with a contemporary society.

Therefore, aside from a brief + exciting climax, the movie doesn't contain a lot of action or violence. This is a very human, character-based story set in a superhero world that explores how an ordinary individual has to deal with such an unexpected situation + how this affects his relationships with those close to him.

A major noteworthy element of this film is the performances of the 2 leads. Both Bruce Willis and Sam Jackson are fantastic in this movie and give arguably one of the their best + nuanced performances of their careers. Willis does a great job of portraying a conflicted person struggling with his personality and his subdued performance allows the audience to resonate with David.

Jackson also is really good at playing someone who is on the opposite spectrum of David due to a rare physical bone disease and finds solace in analyzing comic book characters (hence his interest in David). Another great factor is James Newton Howard's mesmerizing + beautiful musical score which properly sells the dramatic tension that progresses throughout the film along with establishing a noir atmosphere.

Lastly, this movie was released in 2000 during director M Night Shyamalan's peak of his career (The Sixth Sense, Signs) which, after a series of failures, he has been able to pick back up with The Visit and Split.

After 17 years, Unbreakable still holds up really well because of a traditional emphasis on character study/motivations and relevant themes of identity, which is often missing in most big budget blockbuster films. In conclusion, Unbreakable is a very good superhero drama with excellent performances, a unique story, and a nice breakthrough in the superhero genre. I highly suggest checking this one out, along with Shyamalan's Split (which deals with similar themes). :)

My rating: 5/5 stars