Is it worth watching? I consider The Village, The Sixth Sense and Signs Shyamalan's best works even though sprinkled with unforgivable imperfections and some features that I find irrelevant. But the man has something that keeps me wanting to see his stuff although it is mainly crap if compared to great movies directed by more serious artists.

So... Is this an acceptable movie or you think it's completely avoidable, with nothing to save?

"Did they scoff the whole damn Smörgåsbord?" (Audrey) 

"Gimme a donut!" (Coop)

Well, actually I liked The Village...

I think you're not being too objective in judging this new movie. Obviously I was asking to someone who had watched it. Not someone who is skeptical towards Shyamalan's ability to make an interesting and entertaining movie...

"Did they scoff the whole damn Smörgåsbord?" (Audrey) 

"Gimme a donut!" (Coop)

Well since The Sixth Sense, Shymalan has not even shown a hint of his previous potential, so its a safe assumption that the film sucks. Of course I never said it was shit considering I have not seen it, but from what Ive heard from what I consider to be reputable sources, the film is just as bad as his last three works.

And the Village sucked.

That god damn trailer's more popular than Uncle's Day in a whorehouse!

Laura was a patient, I agree with you when you say "something of Shyamalan makes me wanna see his movies".

People, please tell me more specifically what makes - in your humble opinion - The Village this bad movie! A "The movie sucks" judgement isn't enough for me.

"Did they scoff the whole damn Smörgåsbord?" (Audrey) 

"Gimme a donut!" (Coop)

 Do you mean Inside Man?? I actually thought that was a cool film!

As far as Shyamalan's films...Sixth Sense was excellent, I enjoyed Signs, but agree that The Village was shit, havent seen the other one!

"Ive got good news....that gum you like is going to come back in style!"

"I'm a WHOLE DAMN TOWN!"

You're very polite, guys, in expressing your opinion!

By the way, I guess we just can't always agree on everything... Moreover, Lynch makes a film every other 5 or 7 years or so, it's impossible to watch Mulholland dr. (it's just an example) every night and be content with that alone. I'm that kind of person who needs to watch at least a movie once in a week, I mean in a theatre, a new movie!

And it's hard to reach the same Lynch's sublime style... but I guess there are other good directors out there and I thought (before watching LADY IN THE WATER, which by the way is really SHIT but The Village wasn't) Shyamalan had enough to make me want to see one of his movies (anyway, I never went in a theatre to watch his films, except this last one which by the way seemed very good in the beginning, until we don't realize that Bryce Dallas Howard is coming out of a fairy tale... and from that moment on it becomes a never seen quality kind of disaster.The ending is a disgusting carnival of Disney-like creatures moving in the dark wood that surrounds the Philadelphian apartment building the movie is exclusively set in).

"Did they scoff the whole damn Smörgåsbord?" (Audrey) 

"Gimme a donut!" (Coop)

I was wondering why everyone hated the Village so much about halfway through Silencio... sure Adrian Brody was terrible, but it seemed like a creepy little horror flick... but then came the end (which of course, is designed to ruin your earlier perceptions of the movie). After I saw the movie, I realized the twist was really obvious, but that my mind just doesn't think of concepts that stupid easily. *SPOILER* A bunch of people decide life sucks and start a closed community of people, dress like they're in the eighteenth century, and come up with this elaborate plan to keep them from escaping... WTF? This made the whole thing ridiculous and laughble to me. The lamest twists on anthology TV shows were better than this. I had a bad taste in my mouth after the end. It might not have been so bad if the whole movie hadn't hinged on this concept... All I can say that was good about it was I though Bryce Dallas Howard could really be something someday... one of the reasons I want to see Lady in the Water.

That god damn trailer's more popular than Uncle's Day in a whorehouse!

You are to tell no one
in the towns where we are...

  
                  
...and return with haste.

  
                  
My sister did not live
past her   rd birthday.

  
                  
A group of men raped and killed her.

  
                  
They stuffed her in a Dumpster...

  
                  
three blocks from our apartment.

  
                  
My brother worked
in an emergency room downtown.

  
                  
A drug addict came in
with a wound to his ribs.

  
                  
My brother tried to dress the wound.

  
                  
He pulled a gun from his jacket...

  
                  
...then he shot my brother
through his left eye.

  
                  
My husband, Michael,

  
                  
left for the supermarket
at a quarter past nine in the morning.

  
                  
He was found
with no money and no clothes

  
                  
in the East River, three days later.

  
                  
My father was shot
by a business partner,

  
                  
who then hanged himself
in my father's closet.

  
                  
They had argued over money.

  
                  
I am a professor.

  
                  
I teach American History
at the University of Pennsylvania.

  
                  
I have an idea...

  
                  
...that I would like to talk to you about.

I think it's a little reductive to say that they retire from society because life sucks. The crucial point of the film is that the leader of this community living in the country has created the illusion of a good and quite easy life for those who he loves, in order to not feel the pain of living in the real world... But it eventually becomes a nightmare anyway and the violence they escaped is surrounding them all. Even William Hurt's actions are violent and controlling. I think that the anti-climatic crescendo of the film is good and explains that it's not actually a lame excuse for plot twisting, but to me it means a lot more. It's quite evident that Shyamalan wanted to bring onscreen a sort of metaphor for the situation most of the United states live in (especially the decentralized ones). I know it's nothing new and original, but the film is tricky and I loved the way he manipulates the audience with this flick.

"Did they scoff the whole damn Smörgåsbord?" (Audrey) 

"Gimme a donut!" (Coop)

Mr Silencio. To begin with, I think your interest in this director's films is serious and genuine enough to warrant you buying yourself a ticket to see his new film. Your view is that he has potential to become a better director than his films thus far show him to be. You don't deny that his films thus far have left something to be desired, you point to thier imperfections but you are aware merit-worthy aspects as well.

Now here is the point I wanted to make after scanning through these posts - if you held these opinions at the time you watched the Village and since then he has directed the Inside Man, then you were quite right about this director. I mean he is at least better than the film the Village showed him to be, because the Inside Man is clearly a better film. It is immaterial whether others think either of these films or any other film he has directed is any good or worth seeing, I suspect you'll find that most agree that this is true. The real question is this, is the Inside Man the extent of this director's potential? All the same, if the Inside Man is the extent of the director's potential and his new movie, therefore, cannot be any better, is that a reason not to see the his new film?

On the other hand, if you reckon that he hasn't yet reached his full potential - it sounds to me like you think he hasn't - then may be you should be asking people whether Lady in the water is better or at least as good as the best of this director's films so far - avoiding any value judgement of his films - just comparing and weighing which has more merit. That way you might avoid the opinions of those who make it a rule not to like this director. You might elicit more objective responses to your question.

Anyway, I haven't seen this director's latest but if he did Inside Man (I didn't realise he directed that) then I reckon hazard a guess that it'll there will be something about his latest film worth going for.

Beauty is momentary in the mind -
The fitful tracing of a portal;
But in the flesh it is immortal.
The body dies; the body's beauty lives.
So evenings die, in their green going,
A wave, interminably flowing.
So gardens die, their meek breath scenting
the cowl of winter, done repenting.
So maidens die, to the auroral
Celebration of a maiden's choral.
Susanna's music touched the bawdy strings
Of those white elders; but, escaping,
Left only Death's ironic scraping.
Now in its immortality, it plays
On the clear viol of her memory,
And makes a constant sacrement of praise.

('Peter Quince at the Clavier' by Wallace Stevens)

No, that was terribly mistaken!

Inside man is by a totally different director, Spike Lee, who is active since the 70s... while M. Night Shyamalan is active only since the moment preceding the very beginning of this new millennium.

Anyway, I've watched Lady in the water out of curiosity and I was very disappointed, but, as I already told you, I am sure he is able to do much better as he did for The Village, Signs and maybe The sitxh sense which is okay but definitely overrated.

"Did they scoff the whole damn Smörgåsbord?" (Audrey) 

"Gimme a donut!" (Coop)

That god damn trailer's more popular than Uncle's Day in a whorehouse!

 I don't know about LitW, since I haven't seen it yet(my brother claims it's awesome)... But I see many of you call some of mr. Shyamalan's movies shit or crap. You just can't say that one movie is shit just because you don't get it. Some directors just have different aproach, in fact David Lynch is a bright example of this kind of directors. Imagine someone calling TP shit or FWWM senseless crap(cause I've heard that). How would you feel. I think mr. Shyamalan is an excelent director with unique style. I've watched most of his movies and I consider "Sixth Sense" "Signs" and "Unbreakable" to be real pieces of art. His movies have purpose and style. I wouldn't expect less than a great movie from "Lady in the Water".

 But I guess Shyamalan is one of the directors to whose movies some people relate and some just don't...

This isn't right... There's something wrong here...

"Did they scoff the whole damn Smörgåsbord?" (Audrey) 

"Gimme a donut!" (Coop)