Plot
One morning on their farm outside Philadelphia, former Priest Graham Hess discovers a crop circle has been created in his corn field.
Believing it to be the work of a rival farming family, his family – including preteen son Morgan, six year old daughter Bo, and adult brother Merrill think it is something else… something… alien.
When mysterious lights appear in the sky outside major cities… his family might just be on to something.
Direction
Directed by M Night Syamalan, this has all the hallmarks of his distinct style.
It favours character and narrative over action, and his screenplay is prolific without resorting to coarse language.
I loved how the camera acts, as occasionally it reveals things slowly within a scene – even dialogue spoken by characters – and where the camera is situated during mundane moments such as characters walking through their home.
He also diverts from what is happening at times too, such as in the basement scene near the end, and the camera doesn’t show what is happening when an alien attacks Morgan
Cast
Mel Gibson plays the main character of Graham. He is a widower, and former priest who has lost his faith since losing his wife. This is one of the rawest performances Gibson has done (including his own work).
Joaquin Phoenix is sound as Merrill – he has some great moments where he discovers the ‘truth’ about what is going on. It is important to note that he had just come off playing Commodus in Gladiator when he did this movie, so it really showed his prowess in front of the camera.
Future stars Rory Culkin and Abigail Breslin play Morgan and Bo respectively. Both are exceptional, and get plenty to do. Breslin is one of those kids who was adorable as a very young actress, with immense talent who has gone on to age into her talent. Bravo!
Cherry Jones plays a local police officer Caroline Paski – who has been there at the worst for Graham, and continues to check in on him from time to time.
Shyamalan puts himself into a decent cameo as the towns vet, who is also the man who killed Graham’s wife in a devastating car accident some years ago.
Breakdown
Like all of Shyamalan’s other films (that I have seen so far, I still haven’t caught all of his filmography) – it is set in (or near) Philadelphia. Here we have a rural farm setting, which houses the Hess family. Father (former) Graham Hess, his son Morgan, daughter Bo, and brother Merrill, who moved in following the death of Colleen.
What is done very well is how each of these foursome have their own individual characteristics. Graham is the towns former Church Father, who has quit after losing his faith following his wife’s death. Morgan has severe asthma, and is the one who is truly intrigued by the goings on, Bo has very high standards when it comes to her drinking water, and constantly leaves half filled glasses all around the house, and Merrill is a former champion baseball star – having hit the best long range hits in the towns history… but because he swung away at everything he also has the most ‘strikes’ too.
Some of the towns folk are still unable to process that Graham is no longer an acting Priest, and still seek guidance from him. Despite this, he still listens to some of the townspeople (Nurse Jackie’s Merritt Weaver), and has philosophical discussions about what type of person are you to brother Merrill.
One morning, a crop circle appears on their farm – almost too perfect to be done by man. Soon crop circles start popping up all over the world, and not long after this – ‘alien’ spacecrafts start appearing in the sky around the world too.
This was a fascinating approach of an alien invasion. It reminded me of the movie The Faculty, where one of the characters said, if you were going to invade – would you go in guns a blazing like in Independence Day, or would you sneak in through the back door. This had a back door feel to it, and how a random family would be affected by such an event.
There is also a well written way the town (and the family) are skeptical at first, or how conspiracy theory (has Mel done something else like that???) and obsession can take over.
This to me was one of Gibson’s (to date) best performances. He gives such a raw and honest performance, through moments where we discover (through bits and pieces) how his wife passed, and how he is still present to Ray – who fell asleep at the wheel and hit Colleen. This is possibly Shyamalan’s best cameo’s in his film, and adds to the complexity of the entire character of Graham.
He also has a heartbreaking “last meal” with his children, where the entire family are clearly terrified of what is to come are in tears by the end of it (c’mon if that doesn’t get to you!) – he also is able to bring ‘comedy’ to the film where Graham ‘pretends’ to be angry at one of the aliens (when he doesn’t know it’s an alien yet) hiding in Ray’s cupboard.
There is also some solid ‘shock stock footage’ where Merrill is watching the news and you see an alien walk past. Paired with James Newton Howard’s absolutely amazing score, this is a great jump/shock moment!
My only real down in the film is the ending… despite some good jump scares when the aliens attack the house, the logic behind an alien attacking earth when it’s allergic to water is absurd. First they are going to go to a planet that is 70% Ocean… and what would they do if God forbid it rained!!!
Overall
Shyamalan’s third film is still solid all these years later. The majority of the film ie exceptional – with top tier performances from all involved.
The final few minutes – with the alien attack is disappointing – and would have been strengthened if the monsters were never seen.
Also there is the whole thing with the water…
Still a strong recommend.
4/5
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