Trap (2024) * * 1/2

 

Directed by:  M. Night Shyamalan

Starring:  Josh Hartnett, Alison Pill, Hayley Mills, Saleka Night Shyamalan, Ariel Donoghue, Jonathan Langdon

M. Night Shyamalan's Trap contains too many plot holes to be fully satisfying.  The Josh Hartnett performance is a study in conflicted duality which is quite effective.  How do we reconcile the friendly, doting father and husband with the monster who exists in the same person?  There are long stretches where Trap works, but the nagging questions linger.  I will try to explain those without giving away spoilers, but it may be difficult.  

We will start with the premise.  Cooper (Hartnett) accompanies his teenage daughter Rachel (Donoghue) to a concert performed by Rachel's favorite singer Lady Raven (Saleka).  Cooper seems like a caring, loving, innocuous dad who wants to make his daughter happy.  He notices the extended police presence outside and all over the arena.  To quote Romancing the Stone:  "They're mobilizing for Iwo Jima here,"

Using this abundant charm, Cooper asks a helpful vendor named Jamie (Langdon) why the police are everywhere.  Jamie confides that a killer named The Butcher is expected to be at the concert and the police will be there to arrest him.  Cooper is, of course, The Butcher and spends the rest of his time at the concert trying to figure a way past the security fortress led by FBI profiler Dr. Grant (Mills).  Cooper is ingenious, but let's face it, he is aided by police officers who don't seem much concerned about this man gaining access to rooftops and top secret meetings.  

Lady Raven is featured heavily in the proceedings.  She isn't just the performer up on stage or a backstage diva.  Saleka Night Shyamalan infuses Lady Raven with a refreshing sweetness and plays a larger role in the movie than anticipated.  However, questions persist, such as how is it known The Butcher will be attending the concert?  And if authorities know, how do they not know what he looks like?  How is there no media presence at a concert where hundreds of FBI, SWAT, and police are barricading the building?  

The first two questions are answered, if not adequately explained.  The third act of Trap is a cat-and-mouse game between Cooper and Lady Raven, both of whom know the truth and yet can't reveal their cards.  Then, once Lady Raven leaves the scene, Trap becomes even more incredulous with Cooper seemingly able to slip in and out of disguises and escape capture easily.  Cooper, for all of his intelligence, then returns to the one place where he wouldn't be advised to go and the police allow enough time for Cooper and his wife to have a heart-to-heart and share a piece of pie.  The police and then allow for someone under arrest to do things that they should not allow that person to do.  

Trap ultimately ends frustratingly for the viewer because M. Night Shyamalan surely provides a strong setup and a sense of dreaded suspense, but it can't be sustained and followed to a logical conclusion.