Weekend Movie Pick: ‘Split’

Kevin (James McAvoy) and Dr. Fletcher (Betty Buckley) in session. ...but which Kevin IS he?!

Fall Into ‘Split’, A Fractured Thriller/Horror

In Split the Beast is upon us! Only this time he’s not a waist-coat wearing cursed prince waltzing around a ballroom with his beauty; and nor is he a soul-stealing menace in an enchanted forest in the storybook world of Over the Garden Wall. The Beast here, is a ferocious creature trapped in the body of a tormented man. Mental illness is at the forefront of Split, the leading man here, Kevin Crumb has Dissociative Identity Disorder, also known as “DID”.

In Hollywood speak: multiple personality disorder. And Kevin (James McAvoy) , who actively has 23 personalities, has a new sinister 24th personality called the Beast rising up inside him. He is, as one of McAvoy’s identities gleefully admits, “On the move!” inching ever closer to “stealing the light” from the other personalities and taking charge.

Supported by his forward-thinking therapist, Dr. Karen Fletcher (Betty Buckley), Kevin has been excelling at living a normal life for several years. Most often under the control of Barry, a bubbly  aspiring fashion designer with a thick Brooklyn accent, he’s been excelling at his job (a “model employee” Dr. Karen says, smiling upon him benevolently like she’s his proud aunt). It’s a series of urgent emails that Barry starts sending her during the wee hours of the night that perk up Dr. Karen’s sense that something very wrong is brewing.

Casey (Joy), Claire (Richardson) , and Marcia (Sula) in their new basement digs. Style: holding-cell chic. 

She’s not far off the mark, as we see Dennis abducts a trio of high school girls. Best friends Claire (Hailey Richardson), and Marcia (Jessica Sula) along with serial detention-getter and loner Casey Cooke (Anya Taylor-Joy) are snatched by Dennis in the parking lot on a sunny afternoon while leaving Claire’s birthday shindig. This is where Split starts off. Claire’s dad is knocked out, and Dennis commandeers his sedan, stealing off with the girls (after heavily dosing them with chloroform, naturally). Dennis keeps the girls in a sprawling subterranean complex. The masterful use of lighting and camera angles makes this feel urgent and like the girls are in a downright dire situation. Split is an impressive visual journey of roaming through the chilly concrete passages that lead to a maze of rickety, barren cupboards, and spartan stony rooms. These dark and moody digs are where these three “chosen” girls are being kept alternate between being claustrophobically small and overwhelmingly large.

Scottish actor James McAvoy was M. Night Shyamalan’s first pick for the lead role. He brings sensitivity to the identities. Each of them are flawed and dangerous, but they’re also not one dimensional baddies just there for scares. We can even sympathize with them at times. In some interviews Night admitted that he’d long admired McAvoy’s work and used him as a muse for this. Well, his dream casting became a reality. But not before Night, keeping tight-lipped, shanghaied him into playing half a dozen characters. Here, McAvoy is a master at accents and body language. His vocal acting in and of itself is exceptional and he ought lend his voice to animated films.

Hedwig (McAvoy) hangs around for a chat. 

McAvoy creates distinct mannerisms, accents and personalities for each of the identities, so even though we’re watching one actor it’s not a one-note performance. Halfway through the girls captivity a new spunky personality emerges:  nine-year-old lisping man-child Hedwig. Wearing a yellow windbreaker he playfully warns the girls that darkness is headed their way (et cetera!) and is a total scene stealer. He’s part of trio of blacklisted identities helmed by Dennis-- one of the masterminds of the grand plan that’s been set in motion to release the Beast. Allied with another toxic personality, smarmy Brit, Patricia who has also been “banned” from the “light.” these three identities run the show for the duration of the movie.

As the plot progresses we find out Claire, Marcia and Casey are sacrifices for not just the beast but the ominous sounding approaching “hoard.” Casey is at the forefront of the trio and Anya Taylor-Joy brings a lot of emotional heft to her role. She’s an outsider that holds her hurts tightly wound inside of her. She doesn’t sob as readily as Marcia and Claire, but she gets misty-eyed more than once and has a desperation inside of her that only can come from someone who has been broken. Unlike the other two girls Casey has suffered. She’s awake.  

Little Casey knows her rifles. No foolin'.

In a series of flashbacks we see her five-year-old self (Izzie Coffey) with her dad and uncle on frequent hunting trips. Already precocious as it is, Casey learned how to hike, track, and point and shoot at bucks. Camped out in the wilderness, we bear witness to one of the most horrible events of Casey’s life, something that continues to haunt her. Little actress Izzie Coffey is not just a cute face, she is beyond gifted at carrying around the emotions that continue to fuel sixteen-year-old Casey. She’s a vulnerable, curly-haired girl, who’s already adept at keeping secrets and locking her pain deep inside her. For a five-year-old, that’s outstanding. Night doesn’t underestimate our intelligence when it comes to showing us what happened to Casey. His implications are unmistakable, but also not played for shock value.

I could KISS Night for how he portrays mental illness in Split. Kevin Crumb isn’t just insane, nor is he pure evil. He’s disturbed, but not some remorseless serial killer type baddie.

Likewise, Dr. Karen isn’t some psychobabble sprouting quack. She believes the idea of being mentally ill doesn’t make the patients less than. There’s no shame or victimizing here. Karen has a Skype conference where she presents her findings on DID and shares her point of view: that although her patients have been through trauma they're capable of more.

The hoard, soon to be unleashed!

M. Night Shyamalan has had his share of box office bombs and ho-hum horror offerings. But if you’re looking for a roast of the guy, you won’t find it here. Say what you will about him, but he’s got a tremendous imagination. He’s gifted behind the lense of a camera and can craft together eerie screenplays unlike what else is out there. And I really admire how he’s so dedicated to the art of making movies. He’s definitely one of the hardest working directors/producers/

showrunners in the biz right now, and even when his movies falter, his efforts ring through loud and clear, and keep it from being a completely failure. Split with it’s impressive cast, elaborate but not overly complicated plot, and atmospheric scenes may very well be his best thriller to date.

all images from imdb