Unbreakable

A very weird play with our expectations. The film at first appears to be a mystery thriller with a protagonist who, like the viewer, is stumbling in the unknown trying to figure things out, only to gradually morph into an intimate take on the comic book tale of an enlightened and strangely gifted hero who has solved part of the mystery with the help of an outsider and now faces the historically determined and inevitable fate of searching for the ultimate villain. Formally and acting-wise everything is OK, precisely subordinated to the demands of Willis's character's changing motivational development, and specifically the cinematography and chilling music cried out for some kind of material appreciation at the time, but the story only really grabbed me fully in the last half hour or so, until then it had been flapping lightly in one place, relying solely on the unravelling of a few outlined motifs in the final dramatic phase. 75% (07/09/2011)

One of the least appreciated movies of the past decade which was ahead of its time in many ways. Don’t forget that when it was made, comic book movies were still not taken at all seriously and were like a hot potato in terms of financing and quality, and no big studios wanted to have anything to do with them. If you saw it once and quite liked it, try giving Unbreakable another chance. It’s much more sophisticated than it might seem at first sight. Perhaps you will be surprised by its profoundness; and even if you aren’t, you will at least learn why it’s a good idea to avoid physical contact with others. And I would advise David Dunn never to come visit the Czech Republic. He would most definitely lose his mind upon arrival at Prague Main Station. (20/11/2003)

Interesting idea, weaker processing. The Achilles' heel of the film is that it has no de facto supporting plot - it only works with the subtle transformation of an ordinary person into a hero. Oddly enough, it's not particularly boring, but towards the end of the film, I had a persistent feeling of "when will it finally start". More than the indestructible dad Willis, I liked Samuel L. Jackson's mysterious glass man. Through an interesting subject, Shyamalan didn't quite break into the film, but he got somewhere halfway. Still, I like this "hero myth" film more than The Sixth Sense. The less shocking it is, the more impressive it is. A pleasant spectacle that reflects both the phenomenon of comics and the phenomenon of father-son relationships, but it could not resist superficiality... (01/02/2004)

I'm a sucker for mysterious, even supernatural movies. I enjoy watching them and discovering what’s happening along with the characters. It's just that these 106 minutes felt like an eternity. Even the cast couldn't save it. If there was any tension, then I clearly wasn’t paying enough attention in physics... It seems I only crossed paths Mr. Shyamalan in 1999 without so much as a fart since then. Unbreakable was just a mystical bore. (17/12/2018)

In my mind, Shyamalan’s best movie. Close second is Signs (mainly because we had one of those rings in my town, and I’m thinking about it more and more recently ;). Unbreakable has an amazing atmosphere, so ordinary and dark at the same time. Ingenious layering of the story and the method of its delivery makes it seem like it’s based on real events. Absolutely convincing. It doesn’t falter even in its “message", while maintaining high standards as a movie. Shyamalan really should have a crack at filming a real event. In my opinion it would certainly be interesting. (15/01/2007)