I did not want to see "Unbreakable" up until two weeks ago. Since there was so much secrecy behind the film and the trailer was not very informative, I went by the fact that M. Night Shyamalan's last movie was "The Sixth Sense". So I expected some sort of creepy movie that although original would not be all that great. Then I found out that "Unbreakable" is patterned after comic books, so I decided to watch it.

Bruce Willis stars as David Dunn, a 30 or so year old stadium security guard at a Philadelphia University. David has a wife of twelve years and their marriage is on shaky ground. His wife sleeps downstairs and David sleeps with his young son (Joseph, played by Spencer Treat Clark who looks a little like Haley Joel Osmond) upstairs. David's relationship with his wife, Audrey (played by Robin Wright-Penn) is one of the better done elements of the movie. It gives a real three-dimensional character to David.

Anyway, David is on his way home from New York, from a job interview. The train he's on hits another train head-on and everybody dies except for David. This obviously leaves him rather disconnected, and it doesn't help that at the memorial service for the victims he gets a mysterious note with this question: "Have you ever been sick?"

Intrigued by the question, he asks around and neither his boss of five years nor his wife ever remember him being sick. So David and his son visit Limited Edition, which is some sort of art gallery dealing with early comic book art (concept art and sketches, all black and white). Limited Edition is run by Elijah Price (Samuel L Jackson in another good role). Elijah was born with a rare enzyme disorder or something like that -- he doesn't produce a certain protein so his bones are brittle.

All that time in the hospital reading comic books has made a Elijah a bit eccentric. He reasons that since some peaple are born with brittle bones, it stands to reason that there would be people on the other side of the spectrum, ones who are born with nigh-on unbreakable bones. Perhaps they also never get sick and have other enhanced abilities. So Elijah has been searching for signs that these people exist, and a train wreck that leaves almost 200 people dead with one survivor who comes out without a scratch is one of the signs.

"Unbreakable" is a slow developing movie where Elijah tries to convince David that he is one of these people. David has to search his past and really take a look at himself and at the little coincidences in his life until he can bring himself to realize the truth. And that's pretty much the main thrust of the movie. David doesn't become a superhero, wear spandex tights and fights crime. The movie doesn't go that far. But there is a surprise at the end, much like in "The Sixth Sense", one that follows naturally from the movie and clues are provided if you know what you're looking for.

This is a nice drama with a little bit of suspense and a bit of the supra- normal. There are only a couple of funny moments that brought chuckles to people -- "Unbreakable" takes itself seriously throughout. The acting is quite good, actually. Willis, Wright-Penn, Jackson, and Clark all deliver believable performances. The cinematography is also quite good and the plot and pacing are all in tune with the movie.

Yet it falls a bit short of being a great movie. I don't know why exactly. I'm sure it'll appeal to comic book fans, especially the ones that don't read the major label four-color comic books. But I guess it sort of treats a "geek" hobby seriously and in an adult manner and maybe I'm not used to that. It was aimed a bit out of the comic book genre that I read, so I guess I didn't really connect with the movie. Not that my hesitation means it's not a good movie, because it is. I just think it was aimed at the comic book snobs and literati rather than the comic book mainstream audience.