Check your expectations at the door

Rating: 6/10 (31 July 2004)

I don't think it's a spoiler to say there's a twist at the end because we all know that's Shyamalan's thing. At any rate, I think you're overall opinion of this movie will depend on how you feel about the twist at the end. Maybe that's why there's so many 10s and 1s on the board. Either you'll think the ending is brilliant or you'll hate it.
Other than that, it comes down a lot to expectations. When I saw Signs I was expecting something totally different, and walked away disappointed. I think most people felt the same about Unbreakable, even though there's a lot of good to be said about those movies. Even though this movie does have a twist ending, it isn't the Sixth Sense. It isn't too terribly scary either, though it has a few moments. I think if you go into this movie not expecting so much, you'll get a lot more out of it.
I did like the cast a lot. At first I wasn't sure what I felt about Ron Howard's daughter, but she came through in the end. Adrien Brody, as usual, put in a great performance. Sigourney Weaver and William Hurt are also worth mentioning. The dialogue wasn't too bad, and neither was the acting. There were moments before the beginning where I didn't care much for the editing, and why were there so many slow motion shots? They didn't really seem to fit in this movie. So, there you have it. Probably not Shyamalan's best, but I think pretty worthwhile none the less.