SPOILERS***This could have been a good movie***SPOILERS

Rating: Null/10 (18 August 2002)

Signs had the potential to be a good movie, but it fails. I thought the acting and directing were good, but the writing left a lot to be desired.
SPOILERS***SPOILERS***SPOILERS
I understand the movie is really about faith and the aliens were merely a device to help convey that message, but that is no excuse for sloppy writing.
The aliens made absolutely no sense to me. Do they not know that water will kill them? How could they not be aware of this? If they do know, why would they decide to come to Earth, of all places? Earth is 75% water! Why don't they wear any clothing to protect themselves? Why don't they have any tools or weapons other than the poison gas? How can they have the technology to build spaceships and fly to Earth but they can't get through a simple wooden door? Why do they have lights on their spaceships at night but cloak them during the day?
Merrill (Joaquin Phoenix) lives over the garage, not in the main house. Why does he keep his baseball bat in the main house and not in his own house?
The movie takes place six months after the death of Graham's (Mel Gibson) wife. Why is the man who killed her not in jail?