[BluegrassScholar]

I see mean critics.

[Cincinatus]

Viewed from the theatre lobby, the twists in both Signs and Unbreakable seem like rejected Twilight Zone episodes. Think about it: .... Signs is even flimsier: An intelligent alien species that is killed when doused with H20 decides to invade a planet that is two-thirds water?

Thius guy makes the same mistake most critics do on this point: Why does the think the creatures in "Signs" were aliens?

[Freedom of Speech Wins]

LOL on the aliens who were killed by water invading a planet 2/3rds water. A very funny criticism there.

But who says that aliens invading a planet need to be smart or wouldn't need the resources other than water enough to invade?

The criticism reads like a Hit Piece, gee let us take every fact of this director's life and try to criticize him for it. It is the written equivalent of putting him in stocks in front of the town and then throwing fruit at him. Except the author is trying to destroy the director's career and livelihood.

Signs was rivetting with the way it built up the fear.

[Psycho_Bunny]

Sixth Sense was a brilliant film.

Unbreakable was OK but four or five times longer than the story warrented.

Signs, I believe, was the absolute worst film I ever saw.

I watched part of the uber-hyped Shyamalan special on the SciFi channel a week or so ago and found it almost sickenly pathetic.  Of course, that could just have been SciFi's fault:  they pretty much screw everything they touch.

Given his tread, I'm not rushing out to see The Village.

[CaptainJustice]

Another vote here for liking The Village. Shyamalan tells interesting and unique stories and he does it with style.

[massadvj]

I live 80 miles west of Philadelphia in Lancaster County. I own a small and thriving Internet-based company. Am I doing myself, ny customers and my industry a disservice by not moving to Silicone Valley? Hey, Shy, baby. The movie was a bomb, but you stay right here and make more of them. We need all the entrepreneurial talent we can get here in Pennsylvania as we figure out how to wean ourselves off steel and manufacturing. You go, boy.

[hispanarepublicana]

Shyamalan's own hermetic universe. He lives outside of Philadelphia with his wife and children and insists on shooting most of his films within a day's drive.

Is it just me, or is this the very definition of the "American Dream" and "Family Values"? No wonder the liberal Hollywood critics don't like him. (In addition to the fact that he's hired 2 big conservative stars--Mel Gibson and Bruce Willis--for his movies).

[PBRSTREETGANG]

M. Night was in pursuit of the screenwriter's holy grail: the perfect script, one so redolent of profit, star-friendly roles, and greenlight power that the studio executives simply could not turn it down.

Not only did Shyamalan write that script-The Sixth Sense (1998)—he also realized that he had written that script. He flew to Los Angeles, rented a suite at the Four Seasons, and gave the final draft to his agents on Sunday, telling them to auction it off on Monday. Disney offered him $3 million and promised him he could shoot the film. On the Philadelphia set, Shyamalan somehow transformed himself into a disciplined director.

I like how this critic tries to gloss over how Shyamalan managed to "write the perfct script", sell it, and direct it into a blockbuster.

The author of this piece is a moron.

[Edit35]

"Signs" was the worst movie I have ever seen, bar none.

Literally. I was stunned into a stupor at how bad it was.

It was pointless, and boring. Not to mention it wasted what could have been an interesting subject --- aliens and crop circles.

[GETMAIN]

Wow, who'd ever guess? A bitchy, vindictive, pointless hit-piece coming from that esteemed journalistic institution Slate Magazine. The same Slate Magazine which pays Henry Blodget to write articles on the stock market.

[saradippity]

For later reading.

[BSunday]

Haven't seen the movie yet, but I plan too. Even though the title said "The Case Against" I read the whole article and failed to see anything "against" M. Night Shyamalan. I liked all his previous movies, even Unbreakable.

[SuziQ]

Oooo. Somebody sounds very jealous of Night's success. I haven't seen The Village yet, but I loved Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, and Signs

[7.62 x 51mm]

Never heard of him.

[thathamiltonwoman]

Only in Hollywood would a man be attacked for actually wanting to go home to his own wife at the end of the day. This reviewer seems to have a beef with Night for reasons that don't have anything to do with the movie.

[BattleFlag]

Coincidently, I saw The Sixth Sense last night for the first time.

While I find the suspense and horror genres entertaining as a rule (if well done), to have a plot made crystal clear at the end and have that understanding turn out to be 180 degree from what I thought, is to me as entertaining as any film can get.

It transcends "effects" and all of the many overused devices by which film makers seek to entertain.

I'm probably doing a bad job of articulating it but to be "fooled" not for it's own sake but as part of revealing a deeper message or more absolute truth is something I enjoy.

Part of why I liked Signs were the "site gags", i.e. Mel Gibson walking in his son's room and both children are wearing foil hats, and then later on,Gibson walks into the family room and both children and Joaquin are sitting on the sofa wearing tin foil hats as though the adult finally caught on. Also the one liners like "There's a monster outside of my window, can I have a drink of water?", "They should be playing furry, furry rabbit or tea party or something right?" and "It felt wrong not to swing.".

Yeah, I know, I'm easily entertained. :o)

But I really like these two movies and I will most certainly see The Village.