By Guy Wheatley
The Texarkana Gazette
"There are two kinds of people," say's Graham Hess in the latest offering
from M. Night Shyamalan. The movie "Signs" explores these two very different
views of the world using crop circles and aliens for a backdrop. Our reaction
to and interpretation of these events becomes a mirror, revealing which
of the two camps we fall into. Thematically, the film is reminiscent of
some of the classic sci-fi and monster films such as "War of the worlds,"
and "The creature from the Black Lagoon." It stops just short of
actually saying, "The moral of this story is ... "
Mel Gibson plays Graham Hess, a recently widowed Pennsylvania corn
farmer. As the story progresses we learn that he was an Episcopal minister,
but has given up the cloth. His wife's death has shaken him deeply. He
tells his children that he will not waste another minute of his life on
prayer. He is now one of the people who believe that things happen randomly.
"There is no one watching out for us," he tells his Brother Merrill. "We're
on our own."
Merrill, played by Joaquin Phoenix, is Graham's younger brother. Merrill
had potential as a major league baseball player, but failed to make the
cut because he lacked the discipline to play smart. Like so many of Graham's
neighbors, Merrill looks to Graham for comfort and courage. In a moment
of stress, he asks Graham, "can't you just pretend to be like you used
to be?" Merrill is from the other camp. He looks at events and sees signs
of a greater purpose. But, he needs someone like Graham to reassure him
that there is indeed someone looking after us. He needs the old Graham,
and is as distressed as his brother with the minister's crisis of faith.
Gibson and Phoenix both overplay their rolls. These guys just don't
look like they belong in a cornfield. As an audience, we don't believe
that these guys planted the corn we see in the fields. Cherry Jones as
Office Caroline Paski brings to life the most believable character in the
movie. Rory Culkin and Abigail Breslin as Morgan and Bo Hess are cute and
fun to watch, but not especialy believable.
Shyamalan fills the film with both comedic and startling moments. He
doesn't rely on special effects. The actors and story line convey tension
and suspense. The aliens are scary because the characters are scared, not
because of film magic or slime. The quick, shadowy glimpses we get let
our imagination run wild. As with the first "Alien" movie, the scariest
part is what we don't see.
Typical of Shyamalan, the movie distracts us with one element, while
telling us something with another. While this technique worked well in
his two most notable films, "Unbreakable" and "The sixth sense," it fell
short in "Signs." As the focus turns more toward a spiritual element, the
aliens become almost irrelevant and are treated as such. We're never sure
where they came from other than "outer space." We don't know exactly what
they want, and when the leave we're not told why. We are told that the
crop circles are navigation aids, but we are never given an explanation
of why a race capable of interstellar travel hasn't figured out radio beacons.
The central premise pivots around the connection of two moments in
the film. Unfortunately, the connection seems forced and contrived.
The moment of realization is hammer home none too subtly and fails to generate
the "eureka" moment the audience experienced in Shyamalan's previous two
films.
The Movie is entertaining, and worth the price of admission, but falls
short of what we expect from "The next Speilburg."
The web site is easily as entertaining as the film, but will require
a fast connection, or a lot of patience. It is well worth the wait at http://bventertainment.go.com/movies/sidns/
PG-13
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