Signs
Directed by M. Night Shyamalan
Starring Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, Rory Culkin, Abigail Breslin and Cherry Jones
Rated PG-13 for some frightening moments

Signs is the Summer Blockbuster that I have been dreaming of. As with any good Summer Blockbuster, this movie is fun, exciting, and highly entertaining. But most Summer Blockbusters are devoid of any art. The Summer is typically the season for movies that are going to make the big bucks, but won't be remembered in March of the next year when people are talking Oscars. The real good movies with solid direction and that are brilliant works of art generally come out at the end of the year so that they are fresh in the minds of the Academy's voters. But Signs manages to combine the guaranteed money-making entertainment of a Summer Blockbuster and the art and brilliant direction that makes up a typical end of the year film. And the reason I've been dreaming of a movie like this is that there is so rarely a combination of this sort. Part of the reason for this is that the Blockbuster style and the Art style are very clashing styles. The people who know how to make the Summer Blockbusters and make the big bucks generally have no idea how to make a film that is artistically amazing and vice-versa. M. Night Shyamalan has the know-how to do a film with both of these things and Signs is a masterful showcase of his talent.

M. Night Shyamalan is quickly making a name for himself in Hollywood. He showed the world his talent with writing in The Sixth Sense, he showed his talent with directing in Unbreakable and now in Signs he has put those both together. By looking at these three films, it is clear that M. Night is fascinated by the supernatural and unexplainable. But while he likes to take a look at these bizarre things, he likes to do it very intimately and personally. And this is never more evident than with Signs. The film, as you no doubt have discovered by this point, deals with aliens coming to Earth. And it is very easy to make a film that is about the world fighting aliens, ala Independence Day. But
this film just looks exclusively at the plight of Mel Gibson and his family. The story of the rest of the world is brought in by the occasional TV and radio report, but that is not the real concern of the film. And this is what makes this a very interesting film. And all this above mentioned stuff is what creates the Summer Blockbuster atmosphere, but one that is much more intriguing than the typical Blockbuster. It is however M. Night's talent behind the camera that makes this film truly amazing. Framing is one of the aspects of filmmaking that I find to be incredibly important, and these days it seems like so few directors really understand how to frame shots. But M. Night is amazing with his framing. He frames things in doorways and windows and also in reflections off of TV screens. And then you add in that he also has outstanding talent with camera movement, editing and composition and that makes him one of the best directors around. M. Night is a great writer and a great director and when you put those two things together you are guaranteed a great film and that's what you get with Signs.

In the past I have certainly had times in which I have not enjoyed the performances of either of the two lead actors, Mel Gibson (in movies like The Patriot and Ransom) and Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator and 8MM). But it is clear that M. Night has quite a talent with bringing out great performances. The above two and the two child actors, Rory Culkin (Macaulay's brother) and the adorable Abigail Breslin, are all amazing. I can't remember many movies that have relied on such a small cast, but this film does it with ease. Who needs other actors when you get the performances you get with these actors? And it wasn't like this was an easy film to do. This film covers quite a range for the actors from humor to sadness to painfully tense and they all hit these emotions flawlessly. I can't remember seeing a movie that jerked me around so much from deep
laughter to nearly crying to sitting on the edge of my seat so well. It was easily the best collection of performances I have seen all year.

Signs is truly amazing. It has an outstandingly entertaining story and brilliant direction. And what was really great was that M. Night didn't feel like he needed to use a lot of special effects or computer graphics which is almost unheard of these days in Summer Blockbusters. That made the film seem so much more real and allowed for a much better connection to the film for the viewer. I can't say enough about this film. It is easily the best film of the year so far and quite possibly is one of the best movies I have ever seen. M. Night Shyamalan had the chance with this movie to vault himself into the upper echelon of Hollywood directors and he not only succeeded in doing that, he exceeded my expectations which were very high for the film. That's as much as I can drool, thanks for reading.

Rating 93%

- Ben