Devil

It’s telling that when Devil’s trailer debuted in theaters, the tag line “From the mind of M. Night Shyamalan” elicited laughter.  On the plus side, it’s the most satisfying thing the director has developed since Signs.  (He’s the producer here) Unfortunately that isn’t saying much given his track record.  5 strangers are trapped in an elevator terrorized by an unknown killer.  Slender plot would’ve made an effective 25 minute short.  Stretching the slight story to 80 minutes, admittedly brief for a film, becomes rather tedious.  The biggest problem rests with the characters.  The people are at best uninteresting and at worse, obnoxious.  Why should we care whether these lowlifes live or die when they’re so unpleasant?  Perfectly disposal thriller has a polished original score and skillful cinematography.  Sadly, a B movie dressed up in fancy clothes is still a B movie.