Signs of the Happening: Films of M.Night

With The Happening about to hit theaters this weekend (I am sure you have seen the trailer one thousand times at this point), I thought it appropriate to think back on the work of director M.Night Shyamalan. Specifically I want to expose his last two horrifically awful excuses for movies (Lady in the Water, The Village) and focus on his best work: Signs.

As I mentioned, I found M.Night’s last two movies to be trash. M.Night’s signature is (typically) the twist ending. In The Village his problem was relying too heavily on that twist to make the film work. In both The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, the twist was a finale. After being intrigued and drawn along for the entire film(s), our minds are blown. This is more true in The Sixth Sense than Unbreakable, but the tactic remains same. In both cases the movie is solid and is complemented by its unexpected surprise.

The Village on the other hand is just boring for two hours, and then throws in a nonsensical “revelation” in the last five minutes. Does that make up for the suffering of the entire film? Hardly. The twist is only sweet when it takes an already good movie to another level. Instead of a rewarding and eye-opening event, the end caused a reflection on what a waste of time everything else was.

Lady in the Water does not suffer from the same problem, but still is an embarrassment of a movie. It is quite possibly the most contrived, arrogant film I have ever seen. By the end I was in awe at how full of himself Shyamalan was. A director anticipating negative reviews by creating a dislikable critic within the film is a blatant warning sign for failure. M.Night even supposes through allegory that years from now we will look back and see how important the film was. To that all I can say is, “Yeah…ok.”

So with those two atrocities under his belt, why should anyone care about his new movie?

The answer: Signs. A case could also be made for The Sixth Sense, but I consider Signs to be Shyamalan’s best work. In any case, he has crafted two great films and one pretty good one (Unbreakable) that have me holding out the slightest bit of hope that he can overcome his last two missteps. Interesting also to check out the tagline for Signs (above).

Signs is an excellent film that shows the true talent that M.Night sometimes shows. Even starting the movie is done in expert fashion. There is no time wasted to get into the action as Signs dumps you right into the middle of the story almost immediately. From there the suspense and intensity carries the engaging story the entire length of the film.

Suspense is certainly one of the most important and strongest parts of Signs. There are several scenes that keep you on the edge, particularly the “international” clip (said in that way to avoid spoilers). The way Shyamalan is able to draw the audience into the scene is superb. He completes the package by not only delivering the thrills, but the narrative to support them.

The ending is perfect in my opinion. The climax brings the plot full circle, and is a fulfilling finish to the film. The final shot brings an artistic conclusion to a great journey and cements Signs as Shyamalan’s best work. It is also notable that he did not rely on his twist ending to create his most impressive movie. It will soon be seen if he can even come close to this level of skill in The Happening. For better or worse, I will be there to find out.

What are your thoughts on M.Night’s works? Are you planning on seeing The Happening?