10 Unexpectedly Awesome 2017 Movies Everyone Thought Would Suck

8. Split

Why It Should've Sucked: Even with M. Night Shyamalan's recent The Visit serving as a low-key return to form for the writer-director, it was still tough to be optimistic about him once again tackling traditional genre filmmaking with this James McAvoy-starring thriller.

Many simply refused to believe that Shyamalan could be trusted to do justice to a high-concept thriller of this sort again after bungling so many of his recent movies. It would've been so easy for The Visit to be an exception, with Split failing to exploit its dishy premise.

Why It Was Awesome: If The Visit made it clear the filmmaker was still capable of quality work, Split cemented that he's clearly much more comfortable in the lower-budget arena where he can exercise full creative control over the end product.

James McAvoy gives one of his best performances to date in this deliciously twisty little thriller, which does a fantastic job keeping the viewer guessing right up to that howler of an ending. Shyamalan is back, baby, and the 2019 follow-up, Glass, can't come soon enough.