Trap is Shyamalan’s attempt to return to the basics of suspense and psychological thriller, but it’s hard to say if it really sticks the landing. After a string of misfires, this film feels like a half-hearted attempt to recapture the magic of his earlier work. It strips away the supernatural elements for a more grounded, tension-driven story—but the execution often leaves a lot to be desired. Let’s dive into what works, what doesn’t, and why it’s hard to call this a true comeback.
The Setting and Story
The concept behind Trap is interesting enough: a killer hiding in plain sight at a high-energy concert, trying to outwit both the FBI and his own family. Cooper, played by Josh Hartnett, is a sociopath attempting to maintain his cover while under pressure. The idea is inspired by real-life sting operations where law enforcement set up fake events to catch criminals. While the premise has potential, it never quite lives up to its thrilling setup. The tension that could have made this a truly gripping experience often feels forced, as the film struggles to find a rhythm between its high-octane moments and its slower character development scenes.
Instead of playing on the chaos of the concert venue, it gets bogged down in predictable, repetitive beats. You’ll find yourself waiting for something, anything, to happen that doesn’t feel like it’s been done a hundred times before.
Actors:
Josh Hartnett is one of the few things that keeps Trap watchable. His portrayal of Cooper has a subtle menace that works—sometimes. The problem is that Cooper is too one-dimensional for Hartnett to really do anything with. We’re told he’s a sociopath, but we’re never shown why we should care about him—or why Hartnett’s performance should matter. He plays a character with no real depth, which makes it hard to feel invested in the outcome.
Saleka Shyamalan, M. Night’s daughter, plays Lady Raven, the concert’s headliner. She gives an excellent performance, but her character is so underdeveloped that it doesn’t add much to the story. Her role feels more like a way to insert her music into the film than a fully realized character.
On the flip side, Dr. Josephine Grant (the FBI profiler) is a waste of screen time. Her character is a textbook example of wasted potential—she’s introduced as a key player, but by the end, she’s forgettable. The movie’s refusal to delve into her character leaves a significant hole in the narrative tension, especially since her presence could have added much-needed depth to the investigation and raised the stakes.
One of the biggest disappointments is the lack of a classic Shyamalan twist. Yes, the film plays up the suspense, but it does so in such a painfully predictable way that it feels like you’re just marking time. Trap tries to build tension through a cat-and-mouse game inside the concert venue, but it’s rarely as thrilling as it should be. The problem isn’t the lack of a twist—it’s the lack of any real stakes. Without a compelling payoff or any major surprises, the movie feels like it’s dragging its feet.
The pacing is sluggish, and the lack of real tension makes the film’s 90-minute runtime feel longer than it actually is. There’s no real payoff to the slow burn; it’s just… slow. And by the time the film finally reaches its climax, it’s hard to care anymore. The emotional investment is just not there.
Conclusion: A Missed Opportunity
Trap is a film that wants to be a return to form for Shyamalan, but it doesn’t fully deliver. It’s a movie that’s got a great concept but is bogged down by underdeveloped characters, a lack of meaningful tension, and a pacing problem that makes it hard to stay engaged. For a filmmaker known for shocking twists, the absence of one here isn’t the issue—it’s that the suspense feels drawn-out and empty. If you’re hoping for the same kind of tension that made The Sixth Sense or Signs so compelling, Trap will likely leave you frustrated. It’s not a total disaster, but it’s not the comeback fans were hoping for either.