Following a comeback of sorts that involved critical and audience acclaim with The Visit and Split, M. Night Shyamalan is back with another seemingly disturbing thriller.  Universal teased audiences with a 30 second Superbowl spot back in February, but just released the first full trailer and it’s definitely unsettling…

Universal Fear
Based on the 2010 graphic novel “The Sandcastle”, Old deals with a family on vacation at a beach that is more than what it seems.   Once there, time seems to move differently, resulting in their children aging faster, as well as the parents developing wrinkles in minutes.

Aging is one thing that we sadly cannot escape from.  We can try and slow the process by taking care of our bodies, exercising, or even getting professional work done.  But in the end, the forward movement of time is inevitable, and with it, the slow expiration of our physical forms.

Shyamalan Adaptation
Aside from The Last Airbender and After Earth, which weren’t very well received, every single other film of Shyamalan’s was an original idea of his own.  Old marks a departure from that style, and it very easily could go either way.

That being said, the trailer really plays us the disturbing nature of the film’s subject matter.  After all, who isn’t afraid of aging and watching the years fly by?  On a more personal note, the idea of seeing your children age years in only minutes is particularly heartbreaking.

I currently have a 2 year old daughter (and another daughter on the way), and it seems like just yesterday she was being born.  It’s absurd to fathom that so much time has gone by so fast.  They say that having children changes a person.  It’s true for Shyamalan in how he made his films after becoming a father, and it’s true of his audience, myself included.

Shyamalan himself stated that the movie oddly mirrors the worldwide lockdown in the sense that these characters are trapped on this beach, terrified, not understanding everything that’s happening.

His style tends to be very intense and when it’s done right, we get classics like The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, but when done wrong we get The Happening.  Hopefully, Old wins up being the former…

What are your thoughts on Old? What are some of your most/least favorite M. Night Shyamlan movies? Let us know in the comments!

Old releases in theaters July 23, 2021

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