Netflix ambushes subscribers with another stealth release

Have you noticed that whenever a new movie pops up on Netflix with no advance notice, it tends to be - um, how do I say this - less than successful? The latest addition to their slate is another example of this practice.

We try to be diligent when we write about the coming attractions on your favorite streaming service. Inevitably, Netflix will throw a pretty big title into the lineup with little to no fanfare. Even Netflix's own announcement page leaves a lot of films out in the cold until they suddenly appear.

It's as if they haven't worked out the rights to the movies and shows months in advance but find them left on their corporate doorstep like sad little orphans. Like Venom: the Last Dance popping up out of nowhere.

A case in point is a thriller that debuted in theaters to pretty good numbers, $22 million in its first week. It then sank quickly into the pit of mediocrity as word-of-mouth didn't build any audience and finished with a worldwide take of just $84 million. Yes, you'd be happy with it, and I'd be happy with it. But when you consider this director has three flicks that pulled in over $250 million and another that raked in $400 million, this can only be considered a bomb.

Netflix dumps Trap onto schedule in the middle of the week

By now you've figured out that the director in question is M. Night Shyamalan, and the film is Crap. Oh, sorry, it's actually titled Trap. Now, I'm not saying it's a terrible film. Rest assured, it's several cuts above The Happening, The Last Airbender, or After Earth. If you liked any of those movies, you'll probably love his latest movie.

That last film, After Earth, is available on Netflix if you're in the mood for a truly awful movie. Frankly, Will Smith's kid gave a greater performance as a vampire castle at the Grammys.

Okay, back to Trap. There are several things to like about the film. Okay, just one, but it's pretty important. Josh Hartnett is quite good in this role as a loving father with a terrible secret. I'm not gonna spoil the movie for you, as the trailer does a perfect job of that itself:

I had more than a few problems with the logic of this movie. I'm hardly the first person to write about how absurd it is for there to be not just one but two long intermissions in the middle of a concert. The only reason is that Shymalan - who wrote the screenplay - couldn't think of another way to have Hartnett's character spending so much time away from the concert trying to find ways to escape.

Shyamalan's daughter, Saleka Night Shyamalan, plays singer Lady Raven. She's believable enough as a pop star, but when she is forced into the more demanding role of a victim who fights back - well, at least she's a better actor than Jaden Smith.

Even if Shyamalan had cast a competent actress in the role, it wouldn't have saved the movie. The fact that he's described this as a combination of Silence of the Lambs and a concert movie is as unbelievable as most of his plot twists.

Yes, as with any M Night Shyamalan movie, there are surprise twists at the end. And as with most of his films recently, the surprise is completely ludicrous. Now, if it was an appearance by Ludacris, and he turned out to be the killer, that would have been awesome. At least we got a bit with Kid Cudi.

As for the twist, just think back to Signs. Now, I really like the movie, but - okay, spoiler alert for a 23-year-old movie. When we discover that the aliens can be killed by water, and we realize they chose to land on a planet with 71 percent of its surface covered by the stuff that kills them on contact - that's lazy writing. It's like something I'd come up with.

Trap has a 57 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 5.8 rating on imdb.com. If you want to catch a great movie with Josh Hartnett on Netflix, go with Blackhawk Down. If you're looking for a thriller with more suspense - okay, a lot more suspense - watch The Clovehitch Killer, starring Dylan McDermott.

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