Split (2016) Review

Split+%282016%29+Review

Kevin Crumb shows evidence of 23 different personalities to his psychiatrist, yet one remains in the shadows, and seemingly, it is the most powerful one. When one of his personalities force him to kidnap three girls, he does not know that it will bring out the personality lurking in shadows.

Casey, Marcia, and Claire are having a normal day, right up until they get kidnapped. But there is something different about their kidnapper. He changes. Not only do his mannerisms change, but his actual body chemistry changes as well. One day, he presents himself as ‘Patricia,’ a kind woman set to protect them. Other times, he is a 9-year-old boy named ‘Hedwig,’ or even a sexist man named ‘Dennis.’ Either way, the girls are sure about one thing: this man is unstable and dangerous.

Split is a movie that is sure to keep the audience’s eyes glued to the screen in anticipation of what happens next. The different plot twists and turns are sure to keep the viewers in suspense, and the different personalities only add to the perplexing plot. As time progresses, different layers in Kevin become exposed, until the full picture is finally revealed to the audience.

M. Night Shyamalan’s directing is extraordinary, as there are no boring nor anticlimactic moments. Personally, I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. One Easter egg is the fact that Bruce Willis’s character David Dunn from Unbreakable was in the last scene, placing Split on the same timeline as Unbreakable.

The acting is incredible. James McAvoy stars as Kevin Crumb, along with his 24 other personalities. McAvoy manages to capture the distinction between each and every personality and portray a person suffering from Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) well. Alongside with McAvoy, Anya Taylor-Joy stars as Casey Cooke, a girl with a history of suffering abuse and self-harm. She does well depicting Cooke’s sympathy with Kevin’s predicament and her bravery and vulnerability. The actors were all excellent, and every character worked together like a well-oiled machine.

Split fully fulfills the definition of a thriller, leaving the audience with a very exciting experience.