This movie is not about aliens.

Rating: 9/10 (10 August 2002)

***Note, I'm not going to discuss plot points but I will refer to components of the film that might be considered spoilers***
I just laugh when I see so many people focusing on the last thing that this movie is about: aliens. I get the feeling that people were expecting an action-packed alien invasion movie.
This movie is not about aliens. It didn't even have to be aliens; it could have been terrorists or animals or undead for that matter.
The movie was about part of the human experience. The sense of danger was simply an element to magnify the theme of the movie. It was brilliant in my opinion.
As another individual mentioned, this movie was a marvelous example of the deliberate pacing of a movie--an art that seems to have been lost since the early 80's. People with short attention spans should definitely stay away from this movie.
The movie also seems to follow a similar theme to Shyamalan's other movies (the first one was Sixth Sense, followed by Unbreakable) in that it is a story of beginnings--you are always left with the impression there are many stories that could follow out of the idea.
Nicholas Meyer, the director of Star Trek II:The Wrath of Khan among other movies, said something which reminds me of this film. I can't remember the exact words but he basically said that sometimes it the things that are deliberately omitted that make great art. M. Night uses this idea effectively--in some scenes we simply can't see what is going on, which serves to increase the tension and actually makes one *think* about the moment, and it draws you into it. This is a contrast to some of the other more flashy movies of late where the audience can passively watch pretty pictures for two hours, with total detachment.
Well... enough rambling. I highly recommend the film, obviously.