‘Old’ movie review: M Night Shyamalan’s holiday from hell partly engages

The director’s need to have a twist in his tale seems a bit contrived, and leaving things unsaid would have been more effective than the detailed explanations

This is the third bunch of vacationers after The White Lotus and Nine Perfect Strangers finding that R&R at a beautiful island resort might not be exactly what the doctor ordered. With the pandemic putting paid to travel, all these gorgeous resorts turning out to have ugly, horrid warts must be a way of consoling ourselves of the essential sourness of the glorious grapes.

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Director M. Night Shyamalan, who also wrote the screenplay, based Old on the French graphic novel Sandcastle. Guy Cappa (Gael García Bernal), his wife, Prisca (Vicky Krieps) and their children, 11-year-old Maddox (Alexa Swinton) and six-year-old Trent (Nolan River) arrive at Anamika (that should have set alarm bells ringing for anyone who knows Hindi) Resort on vacation.