 |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
 |
|
|
|
 email this review to a friend
A fantastic film about faith Back when Alfred Hitchcock was alive and making his first few films, I wonder if people really understood what a visionary filmmaker they had on their hands? I trust that only hindsight has brought an accurate assessment of the talent and skill posessed by the brillian filmmaker as well as the immense contribution he's made the the industry as a whole. M. Night Shyamalan is the only filmmaker in recent times that will be looked back upon from the future with a similar perspective. Signs is the fifth movie by the writer/director M. Night Shyamalan, though few people have ever heard (much less seen) his first two. Most people erroneously believe The Sixth Sense to be his first film, but I say they are partly right. With the Sixth Sense, Night was reborn as a film maker, not in terms of success but in his understanding of how to make films. It was as if the first two films were just learning experiences; practice runs. After all, who considers a director's student films when looking back at their work? One of the amazing things about Night's work is his skillful use of symbolism and metaphor. It brings a very poetic feel to his storytelling lacking in just about every hollywood film out there. Even more amazing is his use of distractions and double meanings to tell you a story that you don't even realize your being told till the end. He's like a great stage magician; the wonderment is in what you don't see, even though it's right in front of your face. The problem with Night is that he is too good at what he does (and perhaps typical audience member's brain is too atrophied due to the constant deluge of brainless hollywood crap thrown on the screen to understand). I see people condemning Signs for being a poor example of an alien invasion movie, or about alleged flaws in the aliens' design, behavior, motivations, etc.. Unfortunately people like this are why brainless, big-budget garbage like Independence Day (ID4) makes more money. Just because the movie poster has a picture of a crop circle with the word signs right above it does not mean that's what the movie is about; not with M. Night Shyamalan it doesn't. Like The Sixth Sense, Signs points out early on what the film is about, yet people unbelievably fail to get it. Signs is no more about aliens than The Sixth Sense was about a kid who could ghosts or than Titanic is about a sinking ship. The main character is a priest who has lost his faith. The signs he is meant to see are not the ones in his corn crop, but like the audience, that is all he can see. Night masterfully keeps you focused on something else while he weaves his magic. The real signs are only finally understood when the characters understand them giving you a profound connection to them and the story. Award worthy performances seal the deal, making Signs a worthy addition to Night's three films. If you've already seen the film, you really didn't need to read the preceeding words. But perhaps you are wondering whether or not to get the DVD. I was excited to hear that Signs (like Unbreakable) was being released directly as a Vista Series release. Vista Series releases are known for their slick deluxe packaging, extra discs, loads of extra features, and superb audio and video formats. If you've seen the Vista Series versions of The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Tombstone, etc. then you understand what I am talking about. Signs has "Vista Series" stamped on the cover, but missing is just about everything you've come to expect. The DVD is one disc in a plain ole plastic case, and while it does have some nice extra features there are even less then the non-Vista Series release of The Sixth Sense. Basic extras that you've come to expect such as trailers, cast/crew bios, etc are non-existent. There is a nice little behind the scenes documentary. In it we hear about Night's insistance that the film be marketed in certain ways and small clips of the trailers are shown for examples. This only makes me want the trailers included on the disc even more. Leaving them off a premier edition disc is simply inexcusable. There are some deleted scenes, but they are still rough and unfinished and are devoid Night's standard commentary explaining why they were cut. Speaking of commentary, there isn't ANY at all anywhere even for the film itself. The disc only has one english audio format; Dolby 5.1. No choice for DTS or even 2-Channel Surround for those without decked out home theatre systems. This DVD is not worthy of the Vista Series label. It is a direct deceit to those who have come to expect quality from the label. What's worse is that I smell executive gold digging attempting to extort more money from faithful fans with the release of a more deluxe version in the future. This would be the biggest sin. Executives have already got people to buy The Sixth Sense again by releasing the awesome Vista Series version. Now with Signs we get had again, or we get stuck with a shoddy, s email this review to a friend
Comment on this Review:
 Subscribe to MatchFlick Movie Reviews through RSS |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
RSS | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | About MatchFlick® | Press | Contact Us | FAQs
Partnership and Advertising Opportunities | Movie Database | Merchandise ©2004-2009 MatchFlick®. All rights reserved. ©MOVIE IMAGES ARE COPYRIGHT PROTECTED AND THE PROPERTY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS |