“Split” is about three young women who get kidnapped by a man with 23 different personalities and a 24th hidden personality. Throughout the movie, directed by M. Night Shyamalan, this phenomenon is revealed to the audience that is the “beast.” This beast is said to be tall, can climb on walls, and has other unique characteristics. The man has conflicts with his multiple personalities because they can decide on whether they want to unleash this beast that is the 24th personality.

The pacing in this movie is very well done. The main protagonist has a sub-plot that is not revealed at awkward times. There are various flashbacks that give little information, so the audience does not have to think too much at the beginning of the movie. I really liked this sub-plot because it adds much-needed character development to the protagonist.

The antagonist has a significant amount of character development as well. The personalities have a common objective, being they each want to protect the original personality of the person inside that spawned the 22 other personalities. The man goes through counseling in the movie and gives a reason for why he is doing these things to these young women. I like when movies take time to develop the antagonist’s character and not be lazy. The audience can have sympathy for the man with 23 personalities.

The dialogue is not terrible, but has some flaws. There are times when the protagonist and her two classmates do not talk to each other like human beings. They appear forced at times and do not flow well when they are arguing or talking with each other. All around, the words that people use make sense and were mostly acted out well.

The camera work seemed fine, as it did not strike me as anything that was unsettling to watch. I could not find anything that was wrong with the camera angles, but I did not notice anything that was particularly amazing either.

The ending of the movie did not feel unfinished, but was a sequel-tease. Bruce Willis makes his appearance at the very end teasing a sequel. While this may not seem like the worst thing, it would have been better left out.

“Split” was a good movie that does not have that many flaws. It was worth seeing, but I would not see it again.

(3.5 start out of 5)