Glass: The third in a trilogy which began with Unbreakable, continued in Split and now reaches it's conclusion(?) in Glass. This film constructs a new narrative of Superheroes and Supervillains only to simultaneously anatomize that chronicle. David Dunn (Bruce Willis) is happy to be a low-rent Superhero, beating up petty crooks but when out on one of his "walks" he literally bumps into Kevin Crumb (James McAvoy). Crumb has abducted four cheerleaders and Dunn fights him to save them. Far from being pleased with Dunn the authorities consign him to a psychiatric hospital along with Crumb. The special asylum wing has a third occupant, Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), the brittle boned super-intelligent villain who has brooded there for years. Dr. Ellie Staple (Sarah Paulson), believes that the trio are suffering from Superhero Syndrome and wants to break them from this delusion, she believes that their supposed enhanced powers can be explained away by the use of sleight of hand and people seeing what they wanted to see. She is determined to cure them
So the game commences, Price believes that people with super powers have always existed and that narrative has been related through fairytales and folklore and in modern day comics. Indeed Dunn's son Joseph (Spencer Treat Clark) has an epiphany in a comic book store which allows him to finally understand what is really happening. Casey Cooke (Anya Taylor-Joy), kidnapped by Crumb in Split, undergoes a similar experience and shows that she is no longer a victim. Shyamalan exploits the public's fascination with comic book characters to suggest that their powers are a creation of the awe and acclamation of those very multitudes.
Shyamalan can't seem to make up his mind whether he is being light hearted or serious, do you laugh or shiver at how Price introduces himself? Can Dunn's raincape which results in him being called The Green Guardian or The Overseer be anything other than a joke? This film is a strange mixture of The X-Men, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest with touches of Dan Brown and even a homage to King Kong. While the battles in Glass may pale in comparison to those in The Avengers they are powerful nonetheless as they involve the clash of Archetypes. Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan this film will delight, annoy and confound. 8/10.