Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Hayley Mills, Alison Pill
Running Time: 105 minutes
Synopsis: In Philadelphia, firefighter Cooper (Josh Hartnett) accompanies his teen daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue) to a concert featuring pop superstar Lady Raven (Saleka Night Shyamalan). While Riley is having the time of her life enjoying the show, Cooper notices an unusually high law enforcement presence at the arena. He soon learns that the authorities have cordoned the venue to capture a serial killer known as The Butcher, who is believed to be attending the concert.
What Works Well: The initial twist is a good re-orientation of character intentions, and Josh Hartnett delivers a layered performance, full of dad-trying-to-fit-in traits and more edgy quirks. In the early scenes Ariel Donoghue adds bouncy energy as a teenager anticipating and enjoying a spectacular night.
What Does Not Work As Well: Way too much time is invested in Saleka's concert performance, unfortunately fanning suspicions that the project is mostly a nepotistic exercise to promote her music career. All the early investment in Riley is sidelined as Lady Raven then Cooper's wife Rachel (Alison Pill) take turns in the spotlight. The law enforcement efforts are an exercise in quantity (seemingly every Philadelphia police and SWAT officer is at the venue) over quality (they are all remarkably ineffective). Once the action moves away from the concert arena, the plot defaults to an endless series of false endings and silly escapes enabled by idiotic behaviour.
Key Quote:
Lady Raven: Monsters aren't real!
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