‘Trap’ Review: New M. Night Shyamalan Thriller Stands Out in Multiple Manic Manners

Trap is proof of many things. First, and certainly foremost, M. Night Shyamalan is still at the top of his game. As impressive as this is, especially with so many films under his belt already (of varying reception), it isn’t entirely surprising. The man has been on a tear.

Old gave the same feeling when it was released a few years back and, oddly enough, was met with a similar mainstream shrug. We’ll get to that in a moment, though.

Trap also proves that the “old fashioned thriller,” if you will, is very much alive. Organic cinema such as this is hard to come by these days. A unique idea executed in a way that works to subvert your expectations and bend them to the inherently surprising nature of the genre. M. Night is well known for interesting, singular stories in general, but Trap takes it a step further in being legitimately important to the genre under which it falls.

Yet, as with Old, folks seem to have developed a relative indifference towards it immediately upon release. Why? Perhaps it has something to do with the unusual third act and sort of deviant structure.

Taking place in a concert, at least for a while, the film posits our main character as a murderous psychopath dubbed affectionately as ‘The Butcher’. After finding out he’s surrounded at the show, he decides he must escape. That’s as much as can be said without entering spoiler territory. As cut and dry as that sounds, the idea is stretched to its absolute limit in a way that squeezes every ounce of positive potential from the concept.

Shyamalan does a lot here to lead you in one direction for a bit and then whip towards another at the last second; he builds towards that feeling and effect on multiple occasions. It doesn’t always land exactly as intended, but when it does, the impact strikes a scene with immediate memorability.

Trap, above much else, really is just greatly memorable. The 35mm visual sheen is gorgeous, heightened by expert technicality and settings that lend themselves to the grit and grain. It’s an older look, but for a filmmaker who’s spent much time dwelling on old tendencies as M. Night has, it comes off as reverent, and warm.

What’s cold is Josh Hartnett in the lead, in a suitable way. His performance is what makes the film go; written in a way that feels open to his interpretation, he and Shyamalan clearly took it over the top with him in a way that has already proved to fail a complete wide appeal… but is that such a bad thing?

‘Trap’ is a real passion project from an artist that the cinematic landscape will miss when it drives him away.

Hartnett leaning into the silent comedy and hammier, almost 80’s-style horror tinges make him and his character feel organic to the world the film posits. It’s realistic, if not slightly heightened in its interpretation of humans, and how their experiences inform their motives.

Reasons are definitely stretched to fill-in connective issues between themes, but the lost time is a worthy sacrifice when considering the final product. M. Night is able to say a lot about familial archetypes, how trauma grows us, and how it can consume us all the same. It’s nothing that hasn’t been explored before elsewhere, but that isn’t the kicker: it’s that it hasn’t been explored by M. Night before. In any case, even if that exploration falls flat on its face, it’ll be an earnest one. Thankfully, Trap is both fully earnest and carefully produced.

At the risk of sounding like a Shyamalan shill (no shame), Trap may be the utmost highlight of the year so far. Among a solid, varied list of releases, it’s set apart by a distinct visual language, an immediately all-time turn from Hartnett, and a bevy of solid supporting wins that build up to overcome the few losses that do sneak into the show.

Not a “must see”, per say, but a “should see.” Trap is a real passion project from an artist that the cinematic landscape will miss when it drives him away. For now, though, he’s still making stuff like this. Trap is one of his best, and it’s yet another reason to stop doubting him going forward.