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I was reminded of another Pennsylvanian filmmaker while watching M. Night Shyamalan’s latest film — George A. Romero. The apocalyptic storyline where an unknown event makes humans act strange reminded me of Romero’s zombie films or THE CRAZIES. Being that THE HAPPENING is Shyamalan’s first R-rated film, the gory bits and “big kill” moments felt like the touch of Romero as well. However, the weak acting, which never truly undermines Romero’s work, does undermine Shyamalan’s attempt at the supernatural paranoid thriller. Additionally, Romero knows how to set up a scare to make it frightening and when he adds in humor we know we’re supposed to laugh with Shyamalan the two become interchangeable.

As the story begins, some phenomenon has begun in New York City, which causes humans to become disoriented, freeze and then kill themselves. Over in Philadelphia, Science teacher Elliot Moore (Mark Wahlberg, THE DEPARTED) is discussing the recent decline in bees on the planet when they receive word of a terrorist attack in NYC. As they evacuate the school, Elliot’s fellow teacher and best friend Julian (John Leguizamo, SUMMER OF SAM) plans to leave the city with his wife and young daughter Jess (Ashlyn Sanchez, CRASH), inviting Elliot and his wife Alma (Zooey Deschanel, ALMOST FAMOUS) to come along with them to his parents house. But the “event” follows them and Elliot begins to wonder if plants have something to do with the strange happening.

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In 1964 the WORLD IN ACTION TV series followed a group of children in England from different backgrounds. The half-hour program was meant show the potential future leader of the country in 2000. Later a researcher on the project Michael Apted stepped into the director’s chair to see how the children had grown seven years after the first film. Apted has checked in with the subjects for a new film every seven years since, giving the world a filmic time capsule of these individuals and the times in which they lived.

John, Charles and Andrew were young boys at the same pre-preparatory school in the first film. All three in the second film are attending the schools they said they would be attending in the first. While all three came off fairly snobbish in the first installment, only John retains a conservative pretension, while the others seem more progressive, especially Charles who finds the pursuit of wealth to be a road to unhappiness because of all the people you have to ruin to get there. John, on the other hand, wants fame and power, but doesn’t believe he has to be ruthless to get it, only smart. Suzy, a girl from a wealthy, sheltered background, at 14, lives on her family’s Scottish estate. The distance and indifference from the first film has only grown. The other wealthy child in the film was Bruce, who at seven wanted to be a missionary, but by 14, decided that he wouldn’t be good at it because he isn’t good at public speaking.

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