As close to Hitchcock as this generation of directors will get

Rating: 10/10 (30 September 2003)

With the current generation of directors relying on mindless plots and CGI to the hilt to make a statement, it's really refreshing to see a director unafraid of risk-taking.
M. Night Shyamalan's "Signs" embodies everything that a movie-going experience should be about. The emotion that this director draws from his performers is incredible. He leaves you on the edge of your seat when it's all said and done.
I've read several negative reviews through these comments, and I can understand. For the last 25 years we've been blasted with cheap, thrill-a-minute, high-budget action flicks that are all flash and no substance; and as such, we've been seasoned to believe that a good movie MUST have some sort of resolution at the end of it. The bad guy must die, the good guy must get the girl, so on and so forth. But Night refuses to get bitten by that bug.
This is a psychological thriller, the kind that makes you want to gnaw on your fingernails for 105 minutes until you know the main characters are safe. The kind that makes you feel like even though you've only watched the movie for 45 minutes, you know the characters like they were your best friends..all the little quirks.
I heard a rumor in the beginning, Touchstone didn't want Mel Gibson cast as the lead in this movie, that they wanted Bruce Willis. While Bruce Willis is a superb actor, I just don't believe he has the range of emotion that Mel Gibson displays in this film. Very strong performances from Joaquin Phoenix, Rory Culkin and Abigail Breslin make this movie shine.
Whether or not this movie is about aliens is secondary; it's more about the triumph of the spirit over adversity. Shyamalan's choice of James Newton Howard to once again score one of his films proves to be a work of absolute genius, as his score sets the tone from the opening credits to the incredible climax of the film.
I'm sure Hitchcock and Hermann are smiling devilishly at the advent of this young, fresh director, and thinking quietly to themselves "The MacGuffin lives"....