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This post was originally published in 2015.
We have updated it to includeTrap,Split,Old,andKnock at the Cabin.
M. Night Shyamalan has made his career on the plot twist.
You go into a Shyamalan film waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Luckily for Shyamalan, his recent films likeOldandKnock at the Cabinhave put him back in many viewers good graces.
Theres more to Shyamalan than twists.
And yet, the surprise plot twist is still Shyamalans calling card.
At best theyre mind-blowing; at worst theyre winking, pedantic, and self-serious.
In honor of his new movieTrap,we took a closer look at the twists throughout Shyamalans filmography.
How twisty are these twists, really?
Will anything live up to the standard set byThe Sixth Sense?
12.Split(2017)
12.
Only Anya Taylor-Joy survives.
The Twist:Theres no big in-your-face twist like in Shyamalans past films.
Thats the twist that everybody was talking about afterSpiltpremiered this movie is a sequel toUnbreakable.Crazy!
11.The Happening(2008)
11.
It turns out the enemy plants!
is all around us.
The plants are the enemy.
Kill the plants before they kill you.
10.Lady in the Water(2006)
10.
How Twisted Is It?The plot is, quite frankly, insane.
But as nonsensical and trite as it is, its pretty straightforward.
Theres no surprise ending or sucker punch its just not good, at all.
9.Glass(2019)
9.
Are we headed to a super-showdown between heroes and villains, or is all this just in their heads?
When she couldnt convince them that they were just suffering from delusions of grandeur, they had to die.
Unfortunately for them, Elijah managed to leak evidence of their superhuman exploits so now everybody knows anyway.
How Twisted Is It?On paper, this is actually a pretty good twist.
Dr. Staple wasnt ignorant, she had an active agenda to suppress superhumans.
Rather than ratchet things up, as a good twist does,Glass reveal lets the air out.
Rating:As twisted as the MCU timeline these days.
Maybe its a was good thing that this would-be superhero shared universe ended withGlass.
8.Old(2021)
8.
The Plot:A bunch of people go on vacation and visit a beach that makes you old.
The Twist:Why does the beach make you old and prevent you from escaping?
Its never explained, but everybody dies except for two kids who are now middle-aged-ass adults.
Its just not necessarily a very good one.
Rating:As twisty as dealing with the American medical system!
7.The Village(2004)
7.
The only monster thats beyond the walls is modern society, huzzah!
6.Trap(2024)
6.
This is an issue for Hartnetts character because …he is the Butcher (!
), and hell need to do everything he can to escape without being found out.
The Twist:What, our main character being a serial killer isnt enough of a twist for you?
How Twisted Is It?This one is tricky.
The central premise ofTrapis an incredible twist.
The rest of the developments in the movie arent especially shocking.
Lets slotTrapright in the middle of the pack.
Rating:As twisty as Ticketmasters maze of hidden fees.
5.Unbreakable(2000)
5.
Samuel L. Jackson is Elijah, a shadowy figure cursed with fragile bird bones that shatter at any moment.
As you’re free to imagine, this does not end well.
Riding on the fumes ofThe Sixth Sensessmash success probably didnt help its case, either.
:/
4.Signs(2002)
4.
Also, there are literal tinfoil hats.
The Twist:Unlike some of the patterns in the titular crop circle,Signsis not that twisty.
Its your standard crop-circle-alien-invasion narrative.
3.Knock at the Cabin(2023)
3.
The Twist:Turns out they very much were telling the truth!
Theres no real explanation for why any of this happened.
How Twisted Is It?Knock at the Cabinis strikingly effective because its an anti-twist, in effect.
The world is ending unless one member of this seemingly arbitrary family dies.
Somethings notquiteright here, and if you havent figured it out yet, hold onto your butts.
How Twisted Is It?Genuinely very twisted!
You know, with pot.
1.The Sixth Sense(1999)
1.
The Twist:Surprise, Bruce Willis!
Thats why your wife is ignoring you.
Haley Joel Osment, somehow, is actually right.
How Twisted Is It?Pretty twisted!
