--- title: "The Happening: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/the-happening/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/the-happening" critics_score: 42 critics_reviews: 15 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # The Happening (2008): what the critics said Critics' score 42 from 15 reviews: 1 positive, 5 mixed, 9 negative. Most critics find The Happening disappointing, though the reviews repeatedly credit Shyamalan with an unsettling opening. Praise clusters around the early scenes of mass panic, the initial sense of unexplained danger and a handful of creepy images. Even several strongly negative reviews acknowledge that the setup generates dread before the story loses momentum. The more receptive accounts find an intermittently entertaining thriller, with humour that is not always intentional. Reservations centre on implausible dialogue, uneven performances and an ecological message many find heavy-handed or unconvincing. The spread runs from qualified admiration to outright dismissal, with most reviews judging the later stretches weaker than the opening. Wahlberg divides opinion: The New York Times praises his anchoring presence, while Slant Magazine finds his performance wooden. RogerEbert.com offers the clearest dissent from the negative consensus, finding the prospect of humanity’s end thoughtfully handled and oddly touching. ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Rating 3/4. 12 June 2008. The critic finds the film oddly touching in its quiet realism about a possible end to humanity. He singles out the premise of an unexplained airborne threat causing mass suicides for its thoughtful approach. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-happening-2008) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 13 June 2008. The review describes the film as a divertingly goofy thriller with moments of suspense and a solid lead performance from Mark Wahlberg, despite heavy pre-release criticism. It praises Wahlberg's anchoring presence amid the spooky elements and comedy. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/13/movies/13happ.html) ## The Times — Cosmo Landesman Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 15 June 2008. The critic finds the film better than feared but ultimately a load of entertaining hokum with unintentionally funny dialogue. He singles out some spooky and startlingly memorable shots for praise while noting it lacks the expected twists and misses as a fable about nature's revenge. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/article/the-happening-the-sunday-times-review-lls9ppn6v76) ## The Independent Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 12 June 2008. The critic finds it a vast improvement over Shyamalan's previous work and a return to adult filmmaking, though he does not fully trust the audience's intelligence. The promising evocation of dread from the opening premise is undermined by juvenile sensibility and implausible dialogue between the central couple. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/the-happening-15-846155.html) ## Empire — Will Lawrence Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 31 May 2007. Festival review. The film is a disappointingly slight offering from a director capable of much more, with an unsettling opening that quickly loses tension in the countryside. Wahlberg and Deschanel are hampered by an appalling script and hyper-stylised B-movie acting that reduces the impact. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/happening-review/) ## Variety — Todd McCarthy Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 11 June 2008. The review sees it as a transitional, patchy eco-thriller lacking suspense or vitality, with Shyamalan scaling back his usual style to little effect. It criticizes the uninspired storytelling and limited artistic ambition. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2008/film/markets-festivals/the-happening-2-1200521811/) ## Screen Daily Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 11 June 2008. The review sees the film as further diminishing Shyamalan's standing with a paranoia-driven disaster movie that confuses audiences and lacks momentum or revelations. It is more accessible than his prior work but features stilted dialogue, patchy acting, and a silly conclusion, though Mark Wahlberg is engaging. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/the-happening/4039347.article) ## Slant Magazine — Nick Schager Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 12 June 2008. Shyamalan excels at setup but falters on payoff, delivering a stilted and ungainly tale awash in preachiness that undercuts its few terrifying moments with illogical plotting and a ham-fisted eco-message. Wooden performances, especially Wahlberg's, and the absurd premise of a deadly breeze make the film a disappointment. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/the-happening/) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Rating 1 star. 13 June 2008. The critic dismisses the film as an awful clunker whose essential flaws become apparent after a promising start. He singles out the abysmal acting, terrible direction and muddled script for complaint while noting a genuinely creepy opening minute. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2008/jun/13/drama) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Kirk Honeycutt Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 9 June 2008. Shyamalan recaptures some creepiness and thrills from earlier films but the central menace of an airborne neurotoxin causing mass suicides fails as entertainment, coming across as padded '50s sci-fi paranoia or a Twilight Zone episode. The ecological premise of nature striking back lacks cinematic intrigue and tension. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/happening-125207/) ## The New Yorker — Anthony Lane Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 23 June 2008. The critic calls the film an awful letdown after a promising start with shock sequences, criticizing its stunted performances and weak eco-drama premise. He notes the novel image of trees as harbingers of doom as a minor positive. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/06/30/big-kills) ## Time Out — Nigel Floyd Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 26 February 2008. The critic finds Shyamalan's ecological fable and sci-fi paranoia mix disappointing overall, with a strong initial build-up undermined by a weak and underwhelming payoff. The film is seen as another example of clever setup without magic or courage in its convictions. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/the-happening-1) ## Total Film Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 13 June 2008. The review calls it the sixth nonsense from Shyamalan and a misfire like Lady in the Water, with a sinister first act that speedily unravels into the ridiculous. Belief is rudely upended by daft concepts, risible dialogue, wooden acting and an inane wind-chasing set-piece, though early tension and strong direction save it from total disaster. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/the-happening-review/) ## Den of Geek — Sarah Dobbs Rating 3/5. 13 June 2008. The critic finds the film watchable and occasionally creepy or funny, though not entirely successful. Wahlberg is miscast as the lead while John Leguizamo's presence helps salvage much of it. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/the-happening-review-2/) ## Collider — Brian Orndorf Rating C. 12 June 2008. The critic praises the film's strong opening sequences of mass panic and suicides but finds that it deflates in the second half into familiar Shyamalan territory with weak emotional content and repetitive motifs. [Read the review](https://collider.com/the-happening-movie-review/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/the-happening.md