Unbreakable (2000)

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Unbreakable (2000)

Elijah Price (Jackson) is born with Type I osteogenesis imperfecta, a rare disease in which the bones lack collagen of sufficient quality and/or quantity, and break very easily. He is even born with broken bones, as shown in the first scene of the movie, and later receives the nickname "Mr. Glass" due to his fragility. He lives his life searching for a reason for his own existence. Early on in the movie it is shown that his mother tried to encourage him to go outside by placing gifts (in the form of comic books) on a park bench opposite their house. Drawing on what he reads in those comic books, Price theorizes that if he is at one extreme end of the spectrum, then perhaps there is somebody at the other end, someone with greater than usual strengths.

Security guard David Dunn (Willis) is also searching for a meaning to his life. He gives up a promising American football career to be with Audrey, the girl he loved, but after their marriage and the birth of a son Joseph, he still feels an emptiness—that something is missing. It is revealed that he and Audrey are undergoing marriage counseling sessions, as both are still troubled about their nuptials and an accident in the past. After surviving a massive train wreck that kills 131 people (unharmed and as the only survivor), he is contacted by Price, who proposes to a disbelieving Dunn that he is, in fact, a modern day "superhero" (although the word is never used through the course of the film, except when referring to actual comic-book characters). When David tries to ignore Elijah's theory, the dealer interferes with his family life by repeatedly stalking David and his wife, trying to get David to listen to him. David's son, Joseph, is convinced that what Elijah says is true, but Audrey believes that Elijah has severe mental problems, due to his long-term disability.

After much distress in his family, David finally agrees to hear Price out. Elijah believes that comic book heroes are an echo, mimicking prehistoric stories of human beings who truly had greater-than-normal strength and abilities. Elijah believes that Dunn is supernatural. However, there are several instances where he seems to have been harmed. In elementary school, he nearly drowned. Another incident was when he nearly lost Audrey in a car wreck. David turned down football after the accident due to Audrey's disapproval, citing an injury. Price claims that the possibility of drowning is simply the exception to his powers for every superhero has a weakness. Under Elijah's verbal influence, Dunn practices and develops his hyper advanced instinct, which reveals to him the immoral acts of those around him upon any physical touch. While lifting weights with his son, he discovers that—with effort—his physical strength has no real limitation.

As Dunn begins to understand his purpose in the world, he is able to renew his relationship with his wife and his son. Then comes his epiphany—he remembers the accident in detail. He was unharmed after being thrown free of the vehicle—and, when he realized Audrey was still trapped inside, he tore the door off with his bare hands. Afterward, he faked the injury and stopped playing football to remain with Audrey, who was disturbed by the violence of the sport.

This leads to David's first "heroic act." At Elijah's suggestion, David walks through crowds in a Philadelphia train station, and his instinct is now in full effect—he witnesses many shameful acts he can do nothing about: a hate crime, an alcohol-assisted rape. Finally, his 'second sight' shows him something he can act upon - a janitor he has passed broke into someone's house and killed them. David follows the janitor back to the victim's house, where he finds the dead man. Upstairs, he releases the two tied-up children, and finds the mother in a separate room, apparently unconscious. David is ambushed by the man, who throws David onto a tarp lying on top of a pool. The tarp begins to fall into the pool, exposing David to his weakness, water, and nearly killing him. At the last moment, he was pulled up by the children that he just saved. David then confronts the serial killer in a scene that proves once and for all David's superhuman abilities: despite his opponent's being of superior size and strong enough to break walls, he is able to throttle him into unconsciousness with little difficulty. He then releases the mother, only to find that she was already dead. The next morning, David shows the newspaper article of his heroic act to his son, who believed in him all along.

In the final moments of the film, David attends an exhibition at Elijah's Limited Edition art gallery. David shakes Elijah's hand and discovers to his horror that Price has caused several terrible disasters, including the train accident that David was in, just to find someone who would miraculously survive as David did. Price insists to Dunn that he performed these deeds, and they are justified by finding him. He then explains that he has come to realize his purpose in life by finding David: Elijah is the villain to David's hero. David leaves Elijah. As David walks away in despair, Elijah reveals that he realized who he was "because of the kids"...proclaiming, very proudly, that they "called him Mr. Glass". The final captions reveal that David informed the police about Elijah and he was arrested and sent to an institute for the criminally insane.

Part 1

Part 2