DIY VIRAL
The author Robert Scucci
| Published
At the turn of the millennium, M. Night Shyamalan had a hell of a run with movies like Wide awake, The sixth senseand Unbreakable. While these handful of films established Shyamalan as a filmmaker known for his unique twists and third-act payoffs, Signs (currently streaming on Max) is a film that shows his range, lacking the real mind-bending information needed to tell his alien invasion story centered around grief and family survival against overwhelming odds.
Stepping back and focusing on more intimate family dynamics, Shyamalan tells the heartfelt story of a priest who loses his faith after a personal tragedy when War of the Worlds the scenario takes place right outside his residence.
Setting up signs
As a fierce lover of simple plots without extraneous side stories, Signs is one of those movies that I adore because it's so simple.
Mel Gibson's father, Graham Hess, a former Episcopal priest who lost his faith after his wife died in a tragic accident, works as a farmer while trying to keep his family together. Graham's younger brother Meryl (Joaquin Phoenix), a former minor league baseball player, moves home to help raise Graham's children Morgan (Rory Culkin) and Bo (Abigail Breslin) as best he can. Morgan suffers from asthma and Bo has a strange obsession with water, but aside from these physical ailments and personality quirks, they lead normal lives in rural Pennsylvania.
We have visitors
Family dynamics aside, Signs introduces its conflict through inexplicable formation crop circles which appear overnight outside Graham's house, initially written off as an elaborate act of vandalism. When similar formations appear around the world, news networks confirm that this was not an isolated incident and that there have also been sightings of unidentified flying objects and aliens as far away as Brazil. While Graham tries hard to keep his family calm, his faith is questioned as the end times seem to be fast approaching at the hands of aliens.
After hearing strange clicking noises through Bo's old baby monitor and encountering a semi-invisible figure trying to break into the house one night, Graham and Meryl realize they need to close the windows and doors if they're really going to do business. with hostile visitors of unknown origin.
The Last Supper
Which makes Signs What makes the film so special to me is how Graham prepares his family for what he believes is the final showdown between good and evil—the last supper, if you will. Dinner spreads include spaghetti, French toast, mashed potatoes, chicken teriyaki and a bacon cheeseburger. Knowing that the front door they boarded in could open at any moment, the Hess family cries as they try to enjoy some of their favorite comfort foods unless they make it through the night.
Watching Signs after having children of my own, graham's paternal instincts resonated with me the most. When all hell breaks loose, Graham has to put on a brave face and let everyone know that everything will be okay, even if he's traumatized like everyone else.
Not just an alien movie
Signs there is no an alien a film in the traditional sense. The only world-wide disaster we see is newsreels, and everything else takes place within the confines of the Hess residence as one family tries to hold together when an alien invasion threatens to tear them apart. Through this family dynamic, we get a more intimate look at what happens when no one has the answers, but they try to act the way they do. You don't need world building when Graham's entire world is already living under his roof with him, and for that reason Signs endures because its messaging is so timeless.
You can stream as of this writing Signs switched on Max. And if you want to dive even deeper into what I consider to be M. Night Shyamalan's best film, you can take a look Genre vision podcast for even more insight.
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DIY VIRAL
