I was deeply surprised when horror-thriller phenomenon M. Knight Shyamalan decided to take a break from his twisted imagination and direct Avatar: The Last Airbender. Many fans were disappointed with that film but Mr. Shyamalan redeemed himself — and even earned more credit — when his latest thriller Devil hit the theaters.

Devil takes a new spin on paranoia. In this supernatural thriller, a group of people are trapped in an elevator. When the lights short out, one of them is brutally murdered. The group of strangers try to protect themselves while the police attempt to contain the situation and keep the group calm.

Shyamalan is able to put one major twist in after another. The characters are very real although some are slightly irritating. Thanks to great sound effects, the movie is incredibly terrifying. The deep sound seemed to blast from nowhere at a moment's notice.

When the movie ended and the final twist was shown, I could not help but stand and applaud. It will be out on DVD on Dec. 21.

Austin Tyra is a freshman at St. Michael's High School. You can reach him at wannabewriter20@yahoo.com.