Rating: 
Summary: What do these signs point to?
Review: I just got back from seeing Signs, and I'm still sorting it all through my head as I type this. Mel Gibson plays a pastor who has lost his faith due to the violent death of his wife. Joaquin Phoenix plays his brother; an washed up minor league baseball player who lives with Gibson and his two children. As soon as the movie opens the family finds a rather large crop circle design in their farm field (which is in Bucks County, Pennsylvania which is a little under an hour from where I live), and later on they're dog behaves rather violently. This phenomina starts to happen all over the world, and our answer of whether or not we are alone in the universe is finally answered. Gibson and Phoenix are good in their respective roles, as are the children, and the movie is fantasticly shot. Director M. Night Shyamalan knows how to direct with a lot of suspense, and it all pays off big, not to mention there are some parts of the film that are really funny and you'll find yourself laughing out loud right before you jump in suspense. The ending however I thought was a letdown. The same old story of keeping faith in God was a turn off for me, not to mention if your not quick enough to sort every detail through by the time the credits start rolling you'll be left behind in the dust and wonder "what the...". However, Signs manages to deliver the goods for the most part, and is a clear showcase for a very talented writer and director who is clearly in his element.
Rating: 
Summary: "Signs" Will Have You On The Lookout For Alien Lifeforms...
Review: I was blown away by this movie, it is truely one of the greatest horror films of all time. Intelligently written and directed, it is flawlessly realistic and creepily possible. It keeps your attention from its fast paced beginning to its spine-tingeling ending.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth seeing
Review: M. Night Shyamalan's "Signs" may not have the surprising twist of Sixth Sense, but it's definitely creepy enough to get the hairs on the back of your neck to stand up.Mel Gibson, still suffering from the traumatic car accident that killed his wife, wakes up one morning to find an elaborate crop circle cut into the cornfield of his Pennsylvania farm. At first he thinks it's a hoax, but as additional sightings are reported across the world and strange things start happening to his house, his views begin to change. Gibson and Phoenix are upstaged by the great acting of young stars Rory Culkin (brother of that other Culkin), and Abigail Breslin. Shyamalan has a gift for picking out and directing great young talent. Only thing odd about the cast is that Joaquin Phoenix is supposed to be Gibson's younger brother, yet they look nothing alike. Apparently, actor Mark Ruffalo was originally cast for the part but had to drop out due to illness. The same slow, creeping camerawork of his other releases serve to build up the tension, keep you guessing, and effectively create a sense of unease. That said, there are parts of the movie where you almost want to grab the camera yourself as it's falling behind the action. Did someone hit the 'slow' button on the player? You won't get in-your-face action like "Independence Day" so if that's what you're looking for, better off catching "XXX" or something of that nature. What you will get is a well-written story with enough funhouse scares to make you jump and laugh a few times.
Rating:
Summary: WOW! It Has It All!
Review: ...All I can say is that it has it all. It will frighten you...make you laugh...
and make you cry. Those are the elements that make for a great film. Mel Gibson has never been better. His brother (in the film) Joaquin Phoenix is
superb...and his two children (in the film) Abigail Breslin and Rory Culkin are
awesome. I never expected this flick to be much more than another sci-fi
thriller but this one is unique. I've never seen the twists like these in any
science fiction adaptation. It has memories of "War of the Worlds", "Children of the Corn", "Independence
Day", "E.T." and "Contact". What a hodgepodge, huh? While most of the humor is subtle, and done with facial expressions and body
language, there are a couple of hilarious scenes. The fright scenes are dispersed throughout. They are creepy, unexpected and
brilliantly edited. The sound in this film is excellent (Academy notable). But, what surprised me most, was that the film made me cry. I never expected
that. Neither did the other folks in the theatre. I heard sniffles
throughout. All I can say is that Mel Gibson, as Father Graham Hess (that's
right - FATHER), pulls off an emotional masterpiece, filled with family love,
joy, tragedy and fear. His little girl "Bo" is priceless. What a beautiful
little girl. She has "star" written all over her face...just like Kirsten
Dunst (...). Using the Sci-Fi/Thriller chart as my barometer, on a scale of 1-10 (10 being
the highest), "Signs" gets a 9.25. The acting, sound and editing all get a
"10". Wanna laugh? Wanna jump in your seat? Wanna cry? Go see "SIGNS". Then let
me know what you thought of it.
Rating:
Summary: All 'Signs' Point To Great!
Review: I can't remember any movie dealing with this subject matter that was this effective, or human, since "Close Encounters Of The Third Kind" in 1977. That is the movie that this one will most likely be compared too. Deservedly so. What writer/director/ M. Night Shyamalan has done here is concot a real story that isn't razzle dazzle, flashy, summer invasion epic like "Men In Black" or "Independence Day", but a film that deals with a remarkable matter in a very realistic, human way. I've said 'human' twice now because that's what it is. It's not a far fetched super hero or invincible people battling aliens or doing something fantasy driven. The people here could be you or me. It is an honest look at what we ourselves would do, say, or act, if this was really happening to us. It is done here in a real way. The movie follows former preacher turned farmer Graham Hess(who is played superbly by Mel Gibson), and his two kids Morgan(Rory Culkin, Macaulay's little brother), and Bo(the unbelievebaly adorable and sweet Abigail Breslin). His little brother Merill(Joaquin Phoenix), a former baseball player, also lives with them. One typical morning, the family is awakened to strange designs in their crop fields. Crop circles. It is believed at first to be a hoax, naturally, but our family soon learns that weird things have been going on. This is no hoax. Something serious and dangerous is coming. Something is about to happen. But what?. They, nor we, don't know for sure. That's part of the fun. We don't know exactly how it'll come to an end. How it will climax. What could possibly happen?. This is a movie that would much rather creep you out with what is implied and not seen, than actually seen. It works so incredibly well. What little is seen here and there, is executed in a very scary manner. As I always say, less is better. Shyamalan knows how to use his scares in an effective way. He doesn't cram it down our throats or cheat. He lets it build and build until something is about to happen. That is his style. Slow camera angles and parts that go on a bit until the big jump. It is so good how he does it. He is a master who is only getting better. The movie is also surprisingly funny too. The humor here is not tacked on humor just to throw a little in. The humor comes from these people in a natural manner. It comes from the situations these people are in and how they react to it. Very funny. Like in his previous two films, he appears in this as well. His cameo here is much bigger and important. The cast is really good. This is easily Mel Gibson's best work in a long time. Maybe his very best in fact. He is a man who has lost his way thru a horrible accident and no longer has faith in himself. Trying to cope with his family and his loss is hard, and he fleshes that out in his character. He makes Graham Hess a real person. He is great. Joaquin Phoenix is real too. He also gets some of the best lines. The kids. M. Night knows his kid actors. You can always expect any kid in his films to be good. These two are good. The little girl is the cutest thing in the world. You'll want to take her home. Culkin is solid and watchable. How many Culkins are there?. That's about it. Not a large cast. Cherry Jones as the sheriff is the only other one. The ending might satisfy everyone. I'm fine with it myself, although a little more meat to it would've been very appreciated. It's clear what the ending was doing and trying to be, but not everyone will be up for it. There's a religion arc running thru it that won't win over any non religious people. I'm not gonna say anymore on that subject. I can only imagine the people who whine about the film do so only because they can't sustain a movie for a long amount of time that doesn't spray some kind of eye candy across their face. If you are up for an interesting and fun ride, then pass by the ones that complain the movie is slow and doesn't show enough. If it showed everything, it would've ruined the movie. These people don't know these kinds of things. In the end, this is the kind of movie that takes you on an incredible journey and stays with you. This is just like early Steven Spielberg. It is magical and memorable. My favorite film so far this year. I don't think that will change. A creepy, intriguing film that will no doubt become a late summer surprise just like "The Sixth Sense" was in late summer of 1999. Go see "Signs" and enjoy the best movie so far this summer.
Rating:
Summary: Very deep and thought provoking; not really about aliens!
Review: Just saw the film, and wow, excellent! Other reviews seem to focus on the alien invasion portion of the film, which really is NOT what the film is about at all. No, this is not The Six Sense or Unbreakable, which are both fantastic films in their own right. The two latter films had very suspensful and revelational endings that were intended to be shocking. This film does not have that because it would not fit the storyline. Again, Signs is really about just that, "signs". Whether they are pictures, dreams, random statements or crop circles, everything has a pertinent meaning. M. Night Shyamalan's point in this film is simply that, as Mel Gibson's character states in the film, "maybe there are no coincidences". Meaning everything happens for a specific reason and purpose. The storyline is built around an ex-reverend Graham Hess(Gibson), who has lost his faith, when an accident takes the life of his wife. The whole crop circle and alien premise is simply to emphasize the idea that some things may need to be taken more seriously than we do, as human beings. Crop circles were dismissed some years ago as all being hoaxes, BUT, what if just one, was real? That is M. Nights point here. We as humans tend to overlook and discount potentially important events as meaningless, when they actually may be "Signs" of things or events to come. Without giving to much away, see the film with an open mind, and remember it is an M. Night Shyamalan film; he has his own style of filmaking and making a point. Don't go to this film expecting a monster movie, or an "Independence Day" type film. While the film touches on world-wide events, it focuses directly on the life of Graham Hess and his family, and the "signs" Mr. Hess has been given all his life, and finally comes to realize. M. Night Shyamalan's direction is dead on perfect, and the tension and emotion derived from this film are staggering. If you catch the films meaning, you will literally "stagger" out of the theater. Brillantly acted,directed and photographed. Stand outs are Mel Gibson's role and the roles played by the two children, which will leave you emotionally drained. Joaquin Phoenix is good, but this is not a stand out role for him. I expected a more emotional punch for Phoenix's character, yet he is rather stoic. He has a few good scenes, where the tension builds, but Mel Gibson and the two children steal the show. Powerful, very emotional, very deep and thought provoking. Again, don't expect an alien fright flick and you won't be disapointed. This is filmaking at it's best, and needs to appreciated for what is, not what it isn't.
Rating:
Summary: M. Night Shyamalan Toys with Emotions
Review: Graham Hess, an ex-reverand who lost his faith after his losing his wife, now lives with his two children (Rory Culkin, Abigail Breslin) and younger brother (Joaquin Phoenix) in the middle of Pennsylvanian country. When crop circles begin to appear in his crops, weird things begin happening around his house, and then around the world. It's up to Graham to figure out what's going on to save his family before the "signs" reach beyond them. M. Night Shyamalan has definitely done it again with Signs. Dare I say, even better than before (The Sixth Sense). As it was with The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, Shyamalan plays with your emotions here. I went through so many emotions during Signs. The emotions were well spread out and meshed together. I laughed plenty of times at Phoenix's quirkiness and Gibson's character's shyness to cussing. I was on the verge of tears every single time someone began to shed a tear. And there was plenty of moments when I saw something on the screen that gave me thousands of chills. Shyamalan is an absolutely wonderful director. Although some people may be turned off by how much action there isn't, but no action was needed here. We had great story and character development, and great atmosphere. That's all that was needed for this movie. Mel Gibson, once again, portrays his character wonderfully and almost without flaw. His interaction with the children was wonderful, and as I mentioned before, when his face crinkled up to cry, I had to fight back tears. Joaquin Phoenix was great as Gibson's younger brother. He supplied a lot of the humor, but it was subtle and workable humor. But he worked the drama and fear very well too. Awesome actor. Another of the Culkin family is getting into Hollywood, and he has plenty of talent. Rory Culkin plays Gibson's thoughtful son. Culkin was very well at what he did. And the little star of Signs is Abigail Breslin. She played the daughter of Gibson's character, and her calm subtleness was great! She was adorable. Signs, in my opinion, is definitely one of the best movies of 2002. With it's emotional depth, chilling scares, and great acting and directing, it's definitely worthy of that opinion.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining film but...
Review: This is the 3rd major release from M. Night Shyamalan, the 2 being Sixth Sense and Unbreakable. I love this guy's movies cause he deals with paranormal, or unexplained phenomena. This is a film about crop circles. They appear in Mel Gibson's farm crops and suspects it's just punk teenagers. Until news broadcasts start showing unidentified craft over Mexico City and other patterns in crops all over the world. One of the key components in this film: Suggestion over Revelation. Like the Blair Witch Project, what scares you is the things you don't see or glimpse. There's several scenes in the film before the end where you don't see full view an alien, you see his leg pass into a patch of crops or a hand under a door, or when they pick up distorted sounds from a baby monitor. You do see however a full view(albeit blurry)of an alien from a home video shot at a South American birthday party. Quite freaky actually. Don't expect another Sixth Sense with this one. It kinda lags a bit or it wouldn't explain something very clearly or it seems rather uninventive(one of the kids has asthma and naturally he has an attack at a critical moment). Or don't even expect a Sixth Sense-like ending. There's no huge revelation about one of the characters or the aliens. But otherwise like good suspense films it gets under your skin. It'll make you nervous about a certain scene or think something will happen when it doesn't, or just not right away. But it's a entertaining film and should be seen.
Rating:
Summary: Whiners
Review: Is anybody else sick and tired of hearing someone berate a great movie because it is slow?. This is a movie for people who are smart and want intelligence and not cheeseball FX/CGI thrown at them. This is supposed to be real life. Not a wild, implausible soap opera. Grow up.
Rating:
Summary: Continuing the Tradition
Review: Signs is more worthwhile than Unbreakable and almost on par with the Sixth Sense. M. Night Shylaman is a gifted director, not depending on special effects to please viewers. In signs, Mel Gibson plays a farmer, who after losing his faith, discovers crop circles in his corn field. He rejects that they are terrestrial signs. The acting here is superb, from Mel Gibson's mystified performance, to the child actor Rory Culkin and Joaquin Phoenix. The suspense level is high, and the score keeps hearts pounding. Running at about 106 minutes, the film never gets boring. People may think so since they are so starved for special effects, but if you look for pure suspense, atmosphere, and edge-of-your-seat entertainment, Signs has it all.
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