Shyamalan's ‘Trap' Not Being Screened For Critics

It turns out that M Night Shyamalan’s “Trap” will not be screened for critics ahead of its release which is 10 days from now, on August 2.

There won’t be press screenings in NYC, LA, Chicago, Florida and many other cities nationwide. Just to be clear, it’s not because Warner Bros is trying to avoid spoilers from leaking online — the big plot “twist” in the film was already shown in the trailer — but possibly because they know the film will be decimated by critics.

Regardless, this shows a lack of confidence in the film. Yes, we already know Shyamalan hasn’t fared well with critics in his career, with the exception of his first three movies, but not screening the film for press, in the age of Rotten Tomatoes, is a risky decision on the part of Warner Bros.

Described as a “thriller,” “Trap” stars Josh Harnett as a dad taking his teenage daughter to a pop concert. Leaving his seat for the bathroom, Hartnett’s character notices a heavy police presence around the venue and finds out that the concert is a sting operation to catch a serial killer on the loose and intel suggests that the suspect might be at the concert. PLOT TWIST, it turns out, Hartnett is the killer.

“Trap” tested in May, and I had heard mixed reactions coming out of that screening. It’s a mostly straightforward cat and mouse thriller, highly influenced by Hitchcock, but plagued by pacing issues. Hartnett is said to be quite good in the lead role — a darkly humorous performance.

Shyamalan is a very hit and miss director, his last five releases were “The Visit,” “Split,” “Glass,” “Old” and “Knock at the Cabin.” His two best films — “The Sixth Sense” and “Unbreakable” — were released at the very start of his career.