It's time for your close-up Mr. Gibson

Rating: 6/10 (6 August 2002)

Greetings again from the darkness. OK can we hold off for awhile with the "genius" label for M. Night Shyamalan? Is he talented? Definitely. Can he put together a beautifully made film? Definitely. Is he the most creative story teller of our time? Hardly. "The Sixth Sense" was a very well crafted, twisted, almost mystical film. The surprise of "Unbreakable" was obvious from the first half hour, but still enjoyable. "Signs" brings us another well told story, only this one appears to be a rejected X-Files script - very simplistic. A couple of nice scares thrown in for fun, but overall this one is a bit boring. Could Mel have underplayed his character anymore? Two awfully cute kids help cover-up the straight forward story. I would also encourage Mr. Shayamalan to not succumb to the Clint Eastwood school of becoming the star in your own movie - it is a distraction and direction will suffer. If you wish to act, go act in someone else's movie. It is a big jump from cameos to critical roles. Another outstanding score from James Newton Howard - our best film scorer working today (including John Williams and the caught-in-a-rut Danny Elfman). Mr. Shayamalan, you are obviously a movie fan who gets paid to make movies. This is a life many of us only dream of. We are depending upon you bring something new to the screen every time. You are set financially - don't let that stagnate you creatively. The next one is important.