The story-line is undoubtedly clever, its originality will have you thinking about the film long after you've left the cinema but it is also, paradoxically, its weakness. "The Beast", on which the entire premise of the film is based, is where Split finds its downfall; the ending in particular is utterly ridiculous and very nearly ruins the entire film. Split found its strength in a twisted story-line that was absurd yet still believable but the ending took Split from mystery and intrigue to eye-rolls and WTF's.
After kidnapping Kendall Jenner look-a-like Anya-Taylor Joy who plays protagonist Casey, stereotypical popular blonde Hayley Lu Richardson, and the token black girl Jessica Sula to be sacrificed to Kevin's soon-to-be 24th personality, the rest of the personalities attempt contacting psychologist Dr. Fletcher for help. Frustratingly, by the time the appointment rolls around, unfavourable personality Dennis takes the light and reassures the psychologist that everything is fine. However, on the eve of the birth of the 24th personality 'The Beast', Dr. Fletcher receives 21 emails, one from each of Kevin's personalities minus Dennis and Miss Patricia, so sets off to visit Kevin at home.
After discovering Kevin is holding the trio of girls captive, Dr. Fletcher attempts to set them free but is thwarted by Dennis who manifests into The Beast and alas, Dr. Fletcher meets her inevitable demise. The two girls whose names I can't remember and who add nothing to the film also end up dead. Skip forward the cat-and-mouse chase, and Casey is spared once The Beast notices her self-harm scars and denotes her 'pure'.
Purifying self-harm is a dangerous concept especially amongst Split's target demographic. In no way should self-harm be romanticised but by granting Casey 'special status' as a direct result of her abuse it is exactly what happened. Throughout the film we see flashbacks from a young Casey on a camping trip with her father and uncle and it's disappointingly predictable what is going to happen. The story-line makes for uncomfortable viewing that would have better been cut from the film. A more sensitive ending, especially in today's society where self-harm is rife, would have rendered the story-line entirely unnecessary to the plot of the film; a welcome alteration.
It's a total slap-in-the-face for victims of abuse to see Casey saved by her abuser. A strong young woman like Casey who not only survived her Uncle, but was surviving him still, should have been given the right to save herself. At its best the story-line was distasteful, and at its worst it was down-right disrespectful to victims of abuse or self-harm.
However, if you can look past crappy endings or if you're happy to leave the cinema 15 minutes early, then Split is definitely worth going to see even if it's just for McAvoy's performance as front-runner for everyone's favourite personality Hedwig who when combined with Kevin's other personalities, is Split's saving grace. If it wasn't for McAvoy's complete believability and his effortless transition from one personality to the next, Split would have fallen on its head and been as awful as its ending.
You'll enjoy this if you liked: Shutter Island, Gone Girl, Hide and Seek
- LOVE FROM LORNA, X
