"Trap" - Review

Pop Star Lady Raven is coming to town, and devoted father Cooper (Josh Hartnett) has brought his daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) along. But something seems off: there are police everywhere, and Cooper seems on edge. This whole concert is designed to trap notorious serial killer "The Butcher", and Cooper can feel the net drawing tighter.

I like Shyamalan, I've decided. He gets a lot of shit, and is something of a meme in the world, but I enjoy his campy style and how he'll always have the genesis of a great idea. His movies have his fingerprints all over them (usually) in terms of his weird dialogue and tightrope of a tone, and the other thing. You know.
This one is one of his better films in a while: the central conceit of following a serial killer trapped like a cornered rat, making him our protagonist, is certainly a refreshing and unique one. It's pretty fun too: watching him spin and improvise and work out things on the fly. It almost leans into the camp, and could therefore be fantastic fun, but what is already there works: Cooper having to run back and forth to his daughter (a rather good Ariel Donoghue), trying not to let the mask slip. Hartnett is great, clearly relishing the role: he uses his natural charm well, and there are wonderful moments when he twitches or has a darkness loom over his eyes (the conversation with the mother of a girl who is bullying his is great); and honestly his performance carries the whole thing. He'll be a myriad of emotions in a moment, without overplaying it. I like him in this. Also, somewhat amusingly, they still find a way to write him removing his shirt into the script: you can take the heartthrob out of the 2000s, but you can't take the 2000s out of the heartthrob... So yeah, he's great, way better than he needs to be in a movie like this, and it's a good showcase for his talents as a performer.
Then comes Act 3.
It gets a bit wobbly when he goes backstage, but even then it somewhat recovers in a house sequence...
It should have ended there.
It drags into real "Looney Tunes" territory in the last 20-30 minutes, before settling back down at the house once more, as if it is freewheeling and padding for time. It's a shame, after a quite good Hartnett variety hour, that instead of cutting it short and making a well made thriller with his own touches, Shyamalan instead succumbs to thinking he's saying things about trauma and motherhood and being clever. Still, Pill is good.
The build up featuring people clebrating and relishing Shyamalan's daughter as Lady Raven is... hmm, but you know, it's fine.