Ranking Every M. Night Shyamalan Plot Twist From Worst To Best
4. The Visit
The Plot: Two teens, Becca and Tyler, spend a few days with their grandparents, whom they've never met due to some estrangement issues. Nana and Pop Pop are nice enough, but seem a little...off. They're insistence on the kids staying out of the basement and being in bed promptly at 9:30pm suggests that something isn't quite right in the house.
Becca and Tyler decide to set up a hidden camera to verify the disturbing occurrences they believe happen after they go to bed. Then they show the footage to their mother on Skype.
The Twist: ...Who tells them those people aren't their grandparents. It turns out, they're imposters who escaped from a mental hospital and murdered their actual grandparents.
In a movie as subtle and, at times, playful as The Visit - which could very well be Shyamalan's most engaging work to date - that twist actually fits the mood quite nicely. It's a pretty basic idea that's rooted in classic horror mythology. One thing Shyamalan does well is cunningly pay homage to the creature features of the 50s, and this one gives nods to Twilight Zone and Invasion of the Body Snatchers in equal measure.