Signs

Plot synopsis:
Graham Hess (Mel Gibson), a former priest, lives with his asthmatic son, Morgan (Rory Culkin), his daughter Bo (Abigail Breslin) who leaves glasses of water around the house for various reasons, and his younger brother Merrill (Joaquin Phoenix), a failed minor league baseball player, on an isolated farm in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. Hess has lost his faith and gave up his priesthood after his wife, Colleen, died in a traffic accident caused by a town local, Ray Reddy (Shyamalan).
One morning, Graham discovers a crop circle in his field. While investigating the crop circle with the local law enforcement, Graham learns of animals becoming violent across town. Morgan is forced to kill one of the family dogs when it turns violent against Bo. They hear reports of crop circles appearing around the globe, and there are reports of lights from invisible objects over Mexico. Later, Graham and Merrill find the farm is being watched by a tall dark figure which disappears into the fields when they give chase. The next day, they hear strange noises over a baby monitor, but cannot find their source. Graham approaches the crop circle but on seeing a green leg sticking out of the cornrows, flees back to the house.
After opening up to Merrill about the death of his wife, noting that her last words were "tell Merrill to swing away", Graham goes to visit Ray, the first time since the incident. When Graham is gone, Merrill and the children watch a news report about footage taken of an alien creature in Brazil, showing that the aliens can blend into their surroundings. Merrill joins the children in wearing tin foil hats, believing the aliens can read their minds. At Ray's, Graham finds Ray is bleeding from an injury but otherwise apologetic for the accident. After Graham accepts his apology, Ray departs for a nearby lake, saying "they" do not like water. Graham finds Ray has trapped one of the aliens in his pantry, and tries to see what the alien looks like using a kitchen knife under the door; the alien grabs at him, and Graham reacts by cutting off its fingers before fleeing. On his return, and hearing news that more lights have been seen in the skies across the globe, the Hess family decides to stay at their house instead of leaving for the lake, barricading the doors and windows.
After an emotionally charged dinner, they hear the same noises on the baby monitor before their television signal drops out, and place the final barricades and defenses before they gather together. As the aliens attempt to gain entry into the house, the family discovers they have left the attic door unguarded and quickly retreat to the basement. The aliens assault the basement door and in the subsequent chaos the light goes out as Graham and Merrill prevent their entry. However, Morgan suffers an asthma attack when the aliens attempt to enter by way of an old coal chute. By morning, reports on the radio reveal that the aliens have left Earth as suddenly as they arrived. Graham leaves the basement to locate Morgan's asthma inhaler, the others following him. But they discover an alien, the one trapped in Ray's home, is still there, and takes Morgan hostage. Colleen's last words come back to Graham, and he instructs Merrill to "swing away" with a baseball bat from his minor league days. Merrill attacks the alien but not before it attempts to poison Morgan by spraying him with a toxin from its body. Graham recovers his son when the alien drops him and takes Morgan outside with his medication. Merrill continues to attack the alien, causing it to fall onto the ground, knocking over one of the glasses of water Bo had left and splashing it with water. The water reacts like acid on its skin, making it scream in agony. Merrill strikes the alien against furniture where it is doused with water full on its face, and dies. Outside, Graham administers Morgan's medicine and waits for his son to wake up, hoping that due to his lungs being closed from his previous asthma attack he was spared. Then, Morgan wakes up and the family rejoices.
Some time later, the Hess family has recovered from the incident and they appear to be doing much better than before. In the final scene, Graham is shown returning to his priestly duties, apparently having regained his faith.

Tags: romantic

Review:
A Silent yet Simply Beautiful Love Story!.
I think I agree with one of the viewers who said, "This is a better love story than Twilight." I mean, no flowery words spoken, in fact no words spoken at all between the lead characters.
They communicate only through letters written on white paper.
Yet, how touching it was.Actually I was not looking for a love angle in this short movie but the way it was portrayed in the end moved me.
It was simply beautiful, and yes very expressive performance from Nick Russell as Jason and Kestie Morassi as Stacey.
Looked like both of them hardly did any work in their respective offices except making fun at each other, and yet she got promoted too, lol!
Of course, lovely music was another highlight of this cute, little flick :).
Great Short!.
I first watched this film stumbling the internet and fell in love the cinematography.
The story is great, it really makes you feel good after watching it.
The actors were right on key with the story and really made you feel like you were apart of them.
I want to know what camera lens they used on the shoot.
The lighting was so so it was nothing exciting.
I thought the editing on it was great and went with the music, which also fit the mood of the film perfectly.
Patrick Hughues is a great up in coming director and I look forward to his future films!
Overall I give it a 10 and hope Patrick Hughues keeps coming out with great works!.
Geat JOB.
I really like this short movie.
Just pay attention, there is not even one word, but everything is so clear and lovely.
Nice story line, nice play of actors.
During those twelve minutes this movie puts a smile on your face several times and it means that this movie really worth to watch.
Recently watched "Valentine day".
I would not even put this movie in the same line with "Signs".
I love the music as well, nice changes in the melody line and great track at the end of movie.
Thank you very much and I hope to see more of your great job in near future.
Excellent!.
Excellent!.
Excellent!.
Excellent!.
Excellent!.
Excellent!.
Excellent!.
Excellent!.
A Person Who Brighten Your Life.
A man is sick and tired of his usual life and feels loneliness he is single.
One day, he sees a woman in a building next to his office.
Since then they have communicated with written signs and the man's life is becoming lively more and more.
He tries to show words, "Do you want to meet me?" But he hesitates and sadly the woman disappears.
He is depressed so badly and regrets not writing the question.
While he is working, something lightens his face.
He looks up and he is surprised.This film is so romantic that I was moved.
their love is beautiful and I'd like to experience such a thing.
And I understand his feeling very well.
Anyone will be fed up with an ordinary and boring life that is like products made on a conveyor belt.
Therefore a person who we love from the heart is necessary.
Someday, I also want to meet such a person.If you already have someone whom you cherish, please continue to do so.
He or she may brighten your life.
The more you cherish your partner, the more wonderful your life will be.
So, like the man's story..
Funny at the same time Touchy..
2009 Cannes winner Short film ''SIGNS'' is an amazing romantic short film.
This 12 minutes speechless film is about a lonely boy who start communicating with a cute girl in next building using written signs and eventually they met each other.
With a very simple concept, creative director Patrick Hughes made a master piece, actually one of sweetest films i have ever seen.
This short film might seems quiet unrealistic , but i think most people don't to want to see daily boring mundane reality at film.
They rather wish some fantasy and unrealistic events unconsciously.I think the message of the short film is : Love doesn't always talk , sometimes might be expressed even from a piece of paper.
In a world of social networking and cellphone, signs are still powerful as long as they mean a lot.Whole film is well edited and I think background music really is cool and quiet touchy , but over exaggerated Techno sound effects which made it less emotional.
Couple of humorous scenes and at ending part both of the characters' anxiety and final meeting sensational scene made whole film extraordinary .
Besides, within only 12 minutes representing 8 days stories is a very hard job, which Patrick Hughes have done very smoothly..
something unreal in our life, but it deserve to get 10.
I was wondering that could it be real in our life when they didn't use phone or say any word.
But it makes the film special.
No need to talk.
Just by words.
The emotion expressed through their faces, their signs...You can feel like the characters felt: the loneliness of the men in a big city, the simple-but-deep love of him with the woman in the opposite building.
The music in the film makes it more emotional.
The director made a good job!However, I don't think someday it will be real, not on the movie.
But sometimes we shouldn't be practical to rate it.
Deserve to get 10 stars..
Sort of like "Paperman" before there was "Paperman"..
It seems rather odd that Disney received the Oscar for Best Animated Short considering that much of this plot seems inspired by this earlier film, "Signs".
See them both--you'll probably see what I mean.The film is done without verbal dialog.
A young man is working in the big city and is feeling alienated and alone.
As a result, he seems to be just going through the paces in life.
However, one day as he looks out the window of the office where he works, he sees a cute lady in the building next door.
And, surprisingly, she draws a little sign and soon they begin conversing and telling jokes from their respective jobs.
But, they don't meet in person.
See it and find out for yourself.This film is excellent because it shows what can be done without dialog.
Despite this limitation, the film is quite touching and clever.
Very well done and well worth your time...and quite original..
pure romanticism.
a touching film.
for the simplicity of story, for the delicate emotion, for the characters and for role of seed.
a film about solitude and love sens, about the need of love and about happiness.
nothing new or complicated.only two admirable actors creating the sketches of ordinary people more than silhouettes.
a romantic movie , beautiful for reflecting the searches of young man to escape from its life and the meeting, almost magic, with his soul mate.
its romanticism is special because seems be out of the old recipes.
because it reflect, in touching manner, the reality.
that could be its secret.
and its fascination source..
Nice and nothing more.
Signs is a nice depiction of the reversal of roles in the corporate world and the society as a whole.
It is not original.
It is not special.
It's just that a lot of people get to identify with the characters as cliché as they might seem.For a piece of art it is a bad choice for the evolution of the story to use the same Hollywood routine about X meets Y, X falls for Y, X thinks (s)he lost Y => happy end.
In this case it's the actors, rather than the story, who make the piece acceptable.Things change when you see it as it is - a vehicle for advertisements.
Not actually an ad.
More like a disguised ad to make use of the Internet and the newly embraced viral marketing.
Sure, the brands are not that visible, but combined with the aggressive conventional branding they are easily spotted in the target markets.
For this purpose this is a nice story, above average depiction.Edit: It was a 6/10.
I remove 5 stars.
This is a rip off.
O Homem Que Copiava is a Brazilian movie with far less circulation.
And this story is just taken off that movie and replayed in a Corporate key for the Schweppes Short Film Festival.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0367859/Contact me with Questions, Comments or Suggestions ryitfork @ bitmail.ch.
Paperman - the live action version.
Well, actually "Signs" was first, so it's maybe the other way around.
This is a 12-minute movie written and directed by Australian Patrick Hughes, whose most famous work after this short film here was certainly "Expandables 3".
This is so strange as I could not think of a movie more different to "Signs" than parts of the "Expandables" franchise.
These are loud, action-based and not really story-reliant and his short film here is absolutely none of these things.
An office worker is slightly depressed as he can't seem to find love and then he also has to watch people all the time around him being in love.
However, things get better when he starts a sign relationship with a young woman working in the office building next to his.
The two communicate for a while via signs and in the end they finally meet up.
I like how this film ends exactly before the two exchange the first words audibly.
It's nothing really outstanding, but a cute and funny little story and I was always curious what would be written on the next sign, which is probably a good thing.
Nothing worse than indifference.
Thumbs up.
I recommend it, especially to people who have a bit of a soft spot when it comes to romance films.