The Happening poster
Review

The Happening 2008

Directed by M. Night Shyamalan · 90 mins · 1,999 views

2.2 Letterboxd 2.16(208,421)
Ratings I W I M T • M T A E

Synopsis

When a deadly airborne virus threatens to wipe out the northeastern United States, teacher Elliot Moore and his wife Alma flee from contaminated cities into the countryside in a fight to discover the truth. Is it terrorism, the accidental release of some toxic military bio weapon -- or something even more sinister?

Trailers

Reviews (12)

  1. I
    itscharlibb 8 月 23, 2026

    mark wahlberg and zooey deschanel as a couple feels random af but other than that i was totally down.

    2,673 41
  2. W
    Wes 8 月 23, 2026

    this isnt a movie you watch but a movie you survive

    2,521 6
  3. I
    Inherently Viced 8 月 23, 2026

    Some memorable quotes out of the context from M. Night Shyamalan’s magnum opus: “It makes you kill yourself.” “You should be more interested in science, Jake. You know why? Because your face is perfect” “Take an interest in science.” “Can you believe how crappy people are?” “I don’t like to show my emotions either.” “I forgot where I am.” “I need a second, okay!? Why can’t anybody give me a goddamn second!?” “Why you eyeing my lemon drink?” “Don’t take my daughter’s hands ubless you mean it.” “Plastic. I’m talking to a plastic plant. I’m still doing it.” “We’re packing hot dogs for the road. You know, hot dogs get a bad rep. They gotta cool shape, they got protein.”

    1,410 20
  4. M
    Matt Singer 8 月 23, 2026

    Certainly one of the more unorthodox episodes of THE NEW GIRL I’ve seen.

    1,544 3
  5. T
    Tara 8 月 23, 2026

    Mark Wahlberg gets out acted by a plant.

    4,895 29
  6. •
    •lily• 8 月 23, 2026

    WE ATE TIRAMISU TOGETHER AND THAT WAS IT

    927 1
  7. M
    matt lynch 8 月 23, 2026

    “Can you believe how crappy people are?” Fear of a crisis with no rational solution quickly mutates into fear of irrationality itself. It’s everywhere, completely unpredictable and inescapable. You might as well run away from the wind. Shyamalan’s too clunky a writer to quite pull off the tone here, which may be why a lot of folks missed that this is trying to be knowingly funny without tipping its hand at all (not assisted by an already-overly-earnest Wahlberg being directed to play everything entirely straight). But the visual precision once again comes to the rescue. The people are either crammed into stifling interior spaces or minimized in green, leafy outdoor ones, basically filling every single environment with the story’s twin…

    990 6
  8. T
    trin 8 月 23, 2026

    why do they speak like that

    1,537 9
  9. A
    adambolt 8 月 23, 2026

    has anyone made the joke of this movie making you want to kill yourself yet

    1,181
  10. E
    Ethan Vestby 8 月 23, 2026

    When will the rest of the world be as smart as me and realize how great this is?

    699 22
  11. S
    SilentDawn 8 月 23, 2026

    87 Re-watch after re-watch, I try to make sense of The Happening, and in every instance, I fail. Is that the fault of the movie like so many believe? I’m not so sure. Its inexorable link of absurdity and sheer horror is not to be overlooked. M. Night Shyamalan and DP Tak Fujimoto team up for their third collaboration, and they don’t fuck around. All of the agonizing close-ups and crystal-clear wide shots of fields and trees blowing in the wind operate to serve the same function: an evocation of the indescribable. These characters don’t know what’s happening to them, but it *is* happening. Very indicative of a post-9/11 world. Shyamalan is fascinated by this. How do people react when…

    1,360 25
  12. J
    Josh Lewis 8 月 23, 2026

    Haven’t seen this since high school when I remember joining in the pile-on of how ridiculous the whole thing was but years later many of its creepier images like the bodies falling, the lawnmower, the suicide oner, etc have stuck with me so I decided to give it another go. Still has this strange tonal whiplash courtesy of the combination of flatly sincere performances, bizarre writing that gestures towards old B-movies and a terrifying, modern immediacy to Fujimoto’s photography (especially when the sudden, grisly acts of violence occur) but I have to admit it hits harder during a literal pandemic. Captures a very specific, genuinely chilling mood of unreality amidst social breakdown and on rewatch it’s clear the movie is not so much inept but has a perverse sense of humor about human confusion and panic that sometimes got a bit lost in translation.

    802 8

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My rating

M Mark Wahlberg Elliot Moore
Z Zooey Deschanel Alma Moore
J John Leguizamo Julian
A Ashlyn Sanchez Jess
B Betty Buckley Mrs. Jones
S Spencer Breslin Josh
R Robert Bailey Jr. Jared
F Frank Collison Nursery Owner
J Jeremy Strong Private Auster
A Alan Ruck Principal
V Victoria Clark Nursery Owner's Wife
M M. Night Shyamalan Joey (voice)
A Alison Folland Woman Reading on Bench with Hair Pin
K Kristen Connolly Woman Reading on Bench
C Cornell Womack Construction Foreman
C Curtis McClarin Construction Crew Member
R Robert Lenzi Jake
D Derege Harding Train Conductor
R Roberto Lombardi Father in Elliot's Group
K Kerry O'Malley Woman on Cell Phone
Director M. Night Shyamalan
Writer M. Night Shyamalan
Producer Jose L. Rodriguez, Barry Mendel, Deven Khote, Sam Mercer, M. Night Shyamalan, John Rusk, Les G. Jones
Executive Producer Gary Barber, Zarina Screwvala, Roger Birnbaum, Ronnie Screwvala
Editor Conrad Buff IV
Original Music James Newton Howard
Sound Wyatt Sprague, Paul Urmson, Lee Dichter, Robert Fernandez
Special Effects William D. Lee
Stunts Peter Epstein, Chris Cenatiempo, Jodi Michelle Pynn, Deborah Habberstad, Tracey Ruggiero, Tina Fuchs Wanner, Julia Dumenigo, Tina Mckissick, Katie Eischen, Mandy Kowalski, Rose Sias, Jennifer Cobb, Jeannie Epper, Karen Carbone, Kimberly Shannon Murphy, Joanna Shelmidine, Jessica Harbeck
Art Direction Anthony Dunne, Robert Guerra, Barbra Matis
Synopsis
When a deadly airborne virus threatens to wipe out the northeastern United States, teacher Elliot Moore and his wife Alma flee from contaminated cities into the countryside in a fight to discover the truth. Is it terrorism, the accidental release of some toxic military bio weapon -- or something even more sinister?
Director
M. Night Shyamalan
Writer
M. Night Shyamalan
Studio
20th Century Fox, UTV Motion Pictures, Spyglass Entertainment, Blinding Edge Pictures
Country
USA, India
Language
English, French
Year
2008
Runtime
90 mins

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