You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll jump

Rating: 10/10 (6 August 2002)

For the people confused about the "priest" having a family, he was an Episcopal priest.
I have to say, I didn't find the ending to be a surprise twist, and I would have preferred the menace not to be seen in close-up, but the rest of the film really worked for me. Yes, it had shades of "Blair Witch," but so what. What other movie has used silence and darkness to such effect? No, you don't see Mel or Joaquin tilling the land. So what? I laughed, I cried, sometimes in the same instant, and I definitely jumped in my seat a few times.
I wasn't totally sure about the meaning behind Mel's telling his children about their mother at their births, or if it was just his way of reconnecting with them.
M. Night's role in the film didn't seem self-indulgent to me. If I made a film, I'd want to be in it, too. No, he didn't make eye contact with Mel's character, and yes, he was a little monotone; he was totally freaked out.

True, the ending sort of just ended, and I was hoping for more "twist," but I think that was just my expectations. I had the ending figured out early on and would have enjoyed it more had I not been trying so hard.