Don't Be Afraid...Too Much

Rating: Null/10 (2 August 2002)

***DISCLAIMER*** IF YOU ENJOY MOVIES YOU WILL STAND UP RIGHT NOW AND GET IN YOUR CAR AND DRIVE IMMEDIATELY TO THE NEAREST THEATRE AND SEE "SIGNS"! DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME ON MY REVIEW.

M. Night Shamaylan's "Signs" breaks new ground. Whereas "The Sixth Sense" was about ghosts (or ghosts were the outer layer of a more complex thought) and "Unbreakable" was about comic books (or comic books were merely the wrapping paper on a much bigger present) "Signs" is about crop circles...you know where this is going. "Signs" is more than a terrifying look at crop circles, it is the story of a man's struggle to find his faith.
Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, and, yes, even the Culkin kid turn in memorable performances. But when you are sweating through your eight layers of deodorant; you can't really care. "Signs" isn't just an Oscar-worthy film. It is an exercize in what "thrillers" are supposed to be. You cannot begin to imagine the sheer magnitude of the horrors you will witness. From the opening scene where Rory Culkin stabs his dog, Houdini, you know that you in for one helluva ride.
To say the most horrifying moments would be a disgrace to, well, the horrifying moments. You think the trailers are scary? Learn to love the dark, because this movie uses it as it should be. The darkness of this film isn't played for manipulative thrills, it is played for genuine screams from the audience as Shamaylan brings us closer to his twisted denouncement.

The music always adds to a thriller. Shamaylan doesn't use the cliched "crescendo to...nothing" ploy. He uses crescendos when it should crescendo. Pulling from "Night of the Living Dead" and "War of the Worlds" Shamaylan has brought us a new level in terror.
Remember: Don't See It Alone
***** 10/10 *****