MOVIE NIGHT TRAFFIC LIGHT

Blinding Edge Pictures (Distributor: Warner Brothers)

$75M

M. Night Shyamalan (Sixth Sense, The Village, Signs)

M. Night Shyamalan (The Village, Signs, Unbreakable), Sam Mercer (Sixth Sense, The Village, Signs)

M. Night Shyamalan (Sixth Sense, The Village, Signs, Stuart Little)

Paul Giamatti – Cleveland Heep (Cinderella Man, Sideways)

Bryce Dallas Howard – Story (The Village)

Woman in the Water . . . no, Lady in the Lake . . . no, Lady in the Water!  That’s it!!!  But whatever it’s called, you know if it’s from M. Night Shyamalan, then it’s got to be good, right?!

M. Night Shyamalan, the man who brought us The Sixth Sense, Signs, Unbreakable and The Village, brings us his next big motion picture, Lady in the Water.  M. Night Shyamalan based this movie on a fairytale bedtime story he created where a long time ago, people that live on land and people that live in the water were friends.  The water people would council and guide the land people until they all lost touch when the land people moved further and further inland.  Now, the water people are concerned that land people have lost their way and need to make contact with us.  They send special messengers to make contact.  Bryce Dallas Howard plays the lady that lives beneath the pool in an apartment complex managed by Cleveland Heep (Paul Giamatti).  She rescues him one night when he falls into the pool.  He discovers who she is and the legend of the water people.  He will do whatever it takes to make sure she completes her mission to find the person she must deliver her message to and return to her world.  Unfortunately, there is a great murderous creature that will do anything to stop her.  Although the movie is full of fantastical ideas it does an amazing job of making the audience believe that no matter how odd you are, how much of an outcast you feel or how sad you’ve become that you may be meant to be part of something great and that extraordinary things really can happen.

Okay, so the fairytale is a little confusing and, maybe, even a little disturbing.  But, M. Night is a masterful filmmaker, and Paul Giamatti a remarkably gifted actor.  Those two together could make your day job seem interesting, and so this movie is absolutely wonderful.  If you don’t nit-pick the plot and instead just absorb the powerful emotion of it, then you’ll undoubtedly find it moving and . . . more importantly . . . darn good!   

On the Movie Night Traffic Light on a scale of GREEN meaning “Go – it’s a must see”, YELLOW meaning “Caution – it’s okay” and RED meaning “No - stop don’t do it."

We rate Lady in the Water GREEN.  Go – this is another amazing creation by M. Night Shyamalan.