The Happening (2008)

Written by Axemaster August 11 2011
Rating 7.5 out of 10

Director   -   M. Night Shyamalan

Cast
Mark Wahlberg   -   Elliot Moore
Zooey Deschanel  -  Alma Moore
John Laguizamo  -  Julian
Ashlyn Sanchez  -  Jess
Betty Buckley    -   Mrs. Jones
Frank Collison   -   Nursery Owner

"We already bought our tickets for
the 3:00 pm Apocalypse !!"

       Hey there all you End of the World Wacko's !! Welcome to another installment of Hap And Axes August of the Apocalypse !!
Axemasters in the Dungeon tonight with a little gem for you !!!
 The Happening ! This is an end of the world flick with a twist !
Here's the story line in a nut shell ..................

       Its 8:33 am in Central Park , New York . Two friends are sitting on a bench reading . The one says , "I forgot where I am " . The other thinks she's talking about her place in the book , and tells her where she had read to . (How she new this , I don't know !) Suddenly there are screams and the people in the ark , begin maiming and killing themselves !! (Maybe they got there income tax returns !!) The wide spread weirdness includes people stopping in place as if frozen . Some walking a few steps backwards awkwardly !

"Shh ! Listen ...! Yup ! There's a
Train A Comin !!"

   Its now 8:59 am , Three blocks from Central Park . A crew of construction workers are having a coffee break , and telling politically incorrect jokes !(God Bless them !!) As they're standing there , one of their coworkers slams into the ground a few feet away ! They rush to his aide and call an ambulance ( Bring a Spatula !) All of a sudden , another coworker falls from the building they're working on !! And another , and another !! As one burly worker looks up , he sees all his pals taking swan dives from the roof !! Very chilling really !
  Its now 9:45 am at Philadelphia High School , Philadelphia . Elliot Moore is a science teacher . He's talking to his class about the strange disappearance of the Bees . (Yawn!) Suddenly , the Vice Principle interrupts class . Elliot learns of a "Terrorist Attack" In New York . School is cancelled . Elliot and his best friend Julian plan to get their families out of Philadelphia , just to be safe . (These days , you just can never tell when a Terrorist will pop out of the nearest manhole and start doing Terrorist stuff !!) Julians mom lives in a smaller town outside the city . They plan to get their wives and Boogie , even though the odds are small that the Terrorists will strike two cities !

"Oh , I have a Gun in my Nylons !"

  They meet up at the train station . Julians wife is late and doesn't make the train with them . But Elliot's wife , Alma makes it (She and Elliot are having some troubles ! Sub plots are awesome don't you think !??) , and Julians little girl Jess . they board the packed train , and head for what they think is safe country !
  Its now 11:31 am , in Ritten House Park Philadelphia . People are going about there business as usual . Suddenly , Yup You Guessed it !! They start freezing in place and walking backwards and Blam !! Its "Happening" in Philadelphia Too !! On board the train , our hero's hear of the second "Terrorist" hit and freak out ! Then as if their day couldn't get any worse , the train slows down and stops in a town called Filbert . Its in the very Green part of Pensylvainia . Elliot walks up to the Engineer and crew of the train at the small , "Middle of Nowhere" Platform , and asks them what gives !? They inform him that the reason they've stopped is they've .........."Lost Contact" ! Elliot asks with who . They reply ............ "With Everyone" !!! (Zoinks !!!)

"Would you trust this man with
your life !!?? "

  Elliot and the gang must now find their way to a safe haven to wait out these attacks , which begin "Happening" in more remote locations all the time !

"Eighty is Enough!"

  Okay . I'm a fan of Shyamalans . I admit it . I like that he makes you use your imagination a bit when he makes a film . This flick is NOT the "Sixth Sense" , so if thats what you're hoping for , look elsewhere . He purposely made this flick , with a B movie vibe . The dialog is reminiscent of films from the 50's and 60's . I also like that the Apocalypse is caused by something completely different in this one . Give it a try , I think you'll like it . Stay tuned , Fright Fans , for more of our August of the Apocalypse reviews !!

                                And Remember .............................




                    There are forces in Nature , that we will Never Truly Understand !!!!