Review of Lady in the Water (2006) by Davidl. — 25 Jul 2006

My friends and I were unable reach a consensus...was it embarrassingly bad, laughably bad, or tragically bad? however, we did all agree on contrived, pretentious, and stupefying. All of which is especially disappointing for me personally, as I thought, and still think, that "The Sixth Sense" is a masterpiece, and a far better picture than that year's Oscar winner "American Beauty" I rate "Lady In The Water" a '2' rather than a' zero' for two reasons: a beautifully evocative and sometimes truly haunting atmosphere (the cinematography and score, both excellent); and an against-all-odds beautiful and haunting lead performance by Bryce Dallas Howard, who is compellingy otherworldly and somehow entirely convincing (in a critical, but very difficult-to-carry-off part), despite the inconsistent and idiotic (and shockingly predictable) script.

Without her presence the film would have been all but unwatchable, but probably even a whole lot funnier...unintentionally, of course. So, ultimately, I guess, it's really tragically bad, given the director's obvious and previously established talent, and also his apparent lack of humilty and self-awareness as an artist; he needs to spend less time and energy manufacturing and proclaiming his own cultural significance, and more time doing what he has so effectively done in the past: just create entertainment.

In the end it's about the AUDIENCE, Mr Shyamalan, not about YOU.