M. Night Shyamalan’s career has been full of highs, lows, and everything in between. His newest feature film, TRAP, somehow hits and misses the mark simultaneously. The trailer is intriguing and reveals much of what would normally be the hook for a Shyamalan movie. Simply put, Cooper, played by Josh Hartnett, takes his teenage daughter to a pop star’s concert. It turns out he’s a psychotic serial killer, and the FBI, a profiler, local law enforcement, venue employees, and even the pop star are all part of a plot to catch him—though they haven’t figured out his true identity. Typically, the concept of serial killers evokes feelings of dread and fear. However, most everything about the movie is tongue-in-cheek. Dare I even say it’s light-hearted?
The movie follows firefighter Cooper and his daughter, Riley, as they arrive at the fictional Tanaka Arena in Philadelphia. Upon entering the arena, Cooper notices a significant number of law enforcement officers both inside and outside the facility. He’s clearly concerned by what he sees. They eventually make their way to their seats, and the show begins. Cooper is distracted by police officers plucking random middle-aged men from the crowd. A few moments later, he and Riley go to buy concert t-shirts where he asks an unwitting vendor about the law enforcement presence. The vendor, of course, spills the beans about the plot to catch a serial killer named “the Butcher.” He tells Cooper that exits are blocked and there’s no escape. The vendor even provides Cooper with the secret passphrase needed to pose as a venue employee.
Cooper eventually heads to the men’s room to check live footage of his most recent captive victim on his cell phone. The rest of the time in the arena is spent with him desperately searching for a way out, all while attempting to keep his daughter in the dark as the law inches closer to finding him. He lies about his daughter’s health to gain an opportunity to meet the pop star, Lady Raven, backstage and escape the trap. While backstage after the concert, he sees no viable way to evade the authorities. Cooper comes up with a plan to tell the pop star who he is and force her to take him and his daughter out of the arena as her guests in her limo. If she doesn’t agree, he’ll kill his captive remotely with gas. The rest of the movie becomes a cat-and-mouse game, eventually leading to Cooper’s house and the rest of his family. Lady Raven is able to outsmart Cooper and help rescue the captive via the power of social media. Cooper is exposed to his family and escapes as the law descends upon his home. The big Shyamalan reveal is that his wife suspected he was the serial killer and left clues for the police to assume he would be at the concert. Cooper is finally arrested as he’s about to kill his wife. His daughter is left distraught and confused. The movie closes with Cooper being hauled away in a paddy wagon. A tight shot of Cooper reveals him breaking free of his restraints with a deviant smile on his face.
The movie had the potential to be great, but Shyamalan wasn’t clever enough to pull it off this time. There were too many underdeveloped plot devices, with the most glaring issue being a constant reference to an abusive mother that fueled his anger but was never fully explained. Josh Hartnett was great as an OCD, rage-filled dad who puts on a façade of perfection. However, the supporting cast brings the film down a bit. The humor is mildly dark, and I tend to think it would have been better with a more serious tone or darker humor.
Perhaps I’d watch this movie again if I happened upon it on TV, but I’d never rent it to watch it again.
