Good acting, flawed execution

Rating: 7/10 (12 August 2002)

***SPOILERS***
This movie had a lot of promise, only some of which is fulfilled. The acting, especially by Gibson and Phoenix, is believeable if somewhat understated. However the director, who appears in a cameo role, should have put someone else in his role who could really emote, as he completely lacks this basic human ability.
It almost seems as if M. Night wasn't sure about what kind of movie to make. Is it a PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER? Well it seems to be at first but the source of the crop circles is revealed far too soon. I would have preferred this to be kept a mystery until later in the movie. Once it is revealed, it pretty much limits the scope of what the movie could be about. Another problem is Gibson's son, who seems to be right about everything the aliens would try to do, which further erodes the plot's suspense.
After it is revealed that the aliens are making the circles and what their intentions are, you would think it would become an ACTION MOVIE. But no action is shown, and nothing at all is shown of what is going on in the rest of the world. I was not amused with the War Of The Worlds-like solution.
In short, I am tired of M. Night's manipulative movies. He puts obvious clues in his movies that apparently are not noticed by 90% of the movie-going public, which explains why this movie is undeservedly in the top 250 already. Come on, wasn't it OBVIOUS that the water would be part of the solution, or that the bat hanging on the wall would be too? It's the SAME as in Sixth Sense...or was I the only one who thought during the first ten minutes of that film, "Hey, maybe Bruce Willis is dead too."?
M. Night is rapidly painting himself into a corner.