Signs upon signs upon signs...A different SciFi Thriller

Rating: Null/10 (2 August 2002)

M. Night Shyamalan has definitely established a style and brand of his own(although I disagree with those who place him in the pantheon next to Spielberg, but he's getting there...)and with this film it should be noted that his name alone can open a film. This is a delightfully refreshing non-science fiction science fiction film, with a stunningly tense and tormentedly played lead by Mel Gibson, a strong and funny turn by Joaquin Phoenix, and two great kids playing kids you wish you knew,Rory Culkin and Abigail Breslin.
POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
OK, so the trailers are misleading. But this movie starts in a sprint and gets to the action quickly and doesn't disappoint in the ET department. Hardcore Science Fiction fans may feel cheated in this department, but I am a proponent of the "less is more" philosophy.
Sort of a "War of the Worlds" meets "To Kill a Mockingbird, the movie starts as a mystery saturated with sadness, turns heavily Science Fiction and the "things that go bump in the night" are a big part of that, but the tension holds up throughout, making this a film that is really about the four principle family members. Consider: very little action takes place off the family farm, leading to a sense of claustrophobia and creepiness.
Fantastic in tiny but pivotal roles are Shyamalan himself and Patricia Kalember. In a film with seven speaking roles, Gibson and Phoenix included, that is saying a lot.
Sure, the "Signs" referred to in the title are more spiritual than just crop circles, but you are never cheated; as in "Unbreakable" and "The Sixth Sense" if you look closely, the Signs are there in plain sight all the time. Otherwise, why would they have been written in the script?
Funny, scary, touching, admirable and uplifting...all of what movies should be for...