Amid the massive box office success of superhero movies from “The Avengers” to “Aquaman,” director M. Night Shyamalan has attempted to follow the trend with his new homage to comic books: “Glass.” The movie’s effort to distinguish itself from large-scale blockbusters, however, is overshadowed by its incessant appeal to the conventions of comic books and superhero movies.
“Glass” acts as a sequel to two of Shyamalan’s previous films: the moody, small-scale superhero film “Unbreakable” (2000) and the tense, performance-driven psychological thriller “Split” (2016). We meet “Glass’” protagonist David Dunn (Bruce Willis) 19 years after the events that transpired in “Unbreakable.” David is a part-time home security salesman who also patrols the streets of Philadelphia as a hooded vigilante known as the Overseer. Using his extrasensory ability to identify criminals, David comes across Kevin Wendell Crumb (James McAvoy) who has an extreme case of dissociative identity disorder, and whose personalities are responsible for numerous acts of crime and violence. David and Kevin, along with David’s old enemy and cunning terrorist Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), are soon apprehended by the police and taken to a mental institution to be treated for having delusions about being superhumans. Tensions rise as Elijah, who goes by the nickname Mr. Glass, and Kevin’s collective personalities plot to unleash a monstrous identity known as “The Beast” to show the world their true superhuman abilities.
The film flounders in balancing the elements of its predecessors while attempting to develop its own compelling plotline. Structurally, the movie plays like a typical Shyamalan film, with several twists and turns that give the movie enough intrigue to create a desire to know more. Yet the film is bloated with more characters than its runtime can effectively develop, resulting in some awkward screentime delegation. McAvoy’s captivating performance often takes center stage, and the components of “Split” brought into this film are the basis for some of the movie’s most gripping and engaging moments. The focus on Kevin, however, takes crucial time away from David’s development as the hero, leaving Willis’s performance feeling hollow in comparison to his first as this character. Even if the film wanted to make Mr. Glass a pseudo protagonist, his lackluster, villainous dialogue and absence of personality from the first half of the film gives the audience little reason to sympathize with him or his ideals. It feels like the film cannot properly merge its predecessors into a singular coherent sequel, instead jumbling elements of both pictures, leaving a dissonant, half-baked cast and plot.
It’s difficult to pin down whether the film works well as a sequel or even as a standalone film. Those who have seen the prior movies will sit through half a film that tries to convince the viewer that David’s and Kevin’s superhuman abilities (which have already been established as real in the previous films) are merely delusions, only to have both characters easily utilize their abilities during the second half as though their reality stood unchallenged. Meanwhile, newcomers are only allowed a small glimpse into each character’s superhuman feats before being introduced to the conceivable idea that their abilities aren’t real, leaving little basis for the tension the story attempts to build. Furthermore, the film’s continuous references to comic books seem like a cry for attention rather than an insightful commentary. While “Glass” maintains the comic motif from “Unbreakable,” it becomes ostentatious and puzzling when forced upon the characters from “Split.”
While the plot and dialogue are uneven throughout, even during the potentially satisfying (but ultimately tedious) ending, “Glass” is an enjoyable-enough watch for a January release when McAvoy’s performance and a few creative action scenes are taken into account. However, Shyamalan would have fared better by making sequels for each film individually, as “Glass” doesn’t feel like a proper follow-up to either “Split or “Unbreakable.” As an awkward merger between two very different yet very solid films, “Glass” is a muddled story — with some clever stand-out elements — that tries too hard to grab the attention of the superhero fans who might not have otherwise been interested.
