M. Night Shyamalan’s Old is a product of the pandemic. It’s a story that fits right into the prolific filmmaker’s wheelhouse but is set on a very small scale, with only a limited number of characters. But like a lot of Shyamalan’s later work, the gimmick is what pushes Old forward. Discovering the why behind the mysterious beach that ages its inhabitants at a rapid rate is the only thing compelling about the movie. Everything else lacks emotional weight and is oftentimes hokey.
Old features a set of two families and some other random vacationers on a remote beach couched between two massive cliffs. Quickly, the excitement of seclusion turns to paranoia as strange things start to occur and it isn’t long before everyone figures out that they are aging at a rapid rate. Most notably, two of the children in the group, siblings Trent (Alex Wolff) and Maddox (Thomasin McKenzie), become teenagers in a matter of hours (minutes on-screen).
But while Shyamalan’s scripts always tend to set a very eerie premise, it’s the landing that is the most difficult. For Old, the conceit of a beach that ages people works well throughout and it even has a few clever twists along the way. Truly, its most disappointing aspect is the characterization of the beach’s new residents. From line delivery to interactions, there is so much about the screenplay that feels unnecessarily exaggerated. One wouldn’t expect that these characters would act rationally but even the smallest conversation lacks authenticity.
It’s unclear what exactly Shyamalan is going for with Old, whether he purposefully wanted these types of performances or if the script just manifested into a cheesy paranoia film. Whatever the case may be, the lack of characters who act like real people instantly rips you out of the intrigue surrounding the mystery. Somewhere in here is a film that offers an interesting exploration of the way different age groups view the concept of time. How younger generations are willing to make rash decisions in the face of decades ahead of them. Whereas the older one gets, the more they value every moment.
Old has the potential to be a thoughtful movie that fulfills Shyamalan’s desire to creep out his audience while elevating the material. Instead, this film is a one-trick pony that only serves to deliver some trailer-worthy moments and little else. Without a full follow through and performances that feel real, the film comes across more like a B-movie.
Old is in theaters now.
Old (2021)
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Old is a thriller directed by M. Night Shyamalan, based on the graphic novel "Sandcastle" by Pierre Oscar Levy and Frederik Peeters. The film follows a group of tourists who find themselves trapped on a mysterious beach that rapidly accelerates their aging process, leading to a desperate race to escape before their time runs out.