A "Less Is More" Masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (1 September 2005)

When I first saw this film in 2002, it was and still remains the only movie that has ever truly scared me. Of course, my taste has changed considerably since those days, so I recently decided to revisit the film. Upon rewatching it, I've found myself more impressed than I've ever been with this masterpiece.
The story follows Graham Hess (Gibson), a former reverend torn apart by the loss of his wife; his two children Morgan (Culkin) and Bo (Breslin); and his brother, Merrill (Phoenix), a former minor league baseball star. This already stressed out family is put under a considerably heavier trial when they find mysterious patterns in their crops and are then tormented by the following alien invasion of Earth.
"Signs" is the perfect example of the "less is more" approach. Director M. Night Shyamalan builds the tension so expertly throughout the film using nothing but silence and clever camera angles that by the time the climax arrives my chest is about to explode. In fact, I have never seen another film that utilizes silence and shadows so well, it's really makes the film so scary for me. Anytime we see any part of the aliens, it's always so brief or obscured that we're never really sure what it was that we just saw.
However, the film does contain some rather illogical flaws. For instance, why would a baby monitor pick up a sophisticated alien transmission? Why wouldn't the aliens cut the power supply while they were invading Earth? How could they have survived even a second in Earth's moist atmosphere if water kills them? But I, for one, was too enthralled in the story to care.
Another thing I greatly appreciated in "Signs" was James Newton Howard's excellent score. It was not ubiquitous, clichÃ©, or intrusive like the identical "original" scores in all the Hollywood fright films of late. It was there when it should have been and it wasn't when it shouldn't have been.
But "Signs" is not just a frightening sci-fi film, it also a film about faith. Graham is a man struggling with his beliefs, which leads to a rather powerful scene toward the end of the film in which he must talk his son through a violent asthma attack while exclaiming "I hate you!" at God. Such scenes are also quite demanding from an acting standpoint, and the acting is capably handled by both of the leading men and also by the small band of supporting actors. Oh, this reminds me, keep your eyes open for a cool little cameo by Stella's Michael Showalter.
On top of all this, the film also features beautiful, vivid cinematography and genuinely ingenious, fluid camera movements from Shyamalan.
I guess "Signs" is one of those "love it or hate it" films, as I have heard lots of opinions on both sides of the spectrum and not too many in the gray area. As you have probably noticed, I am one of those who love it and I will watch and enjoy this excellent piece of cinema for years to come.
9.5/10