The Lady in the Water is a modern fairy tale about finding one’s purpose, yadda yadda… It’s a passable film, though utterly predictable and hokey. The characters are like chess pieces in a pre-determined match. You know how things will end up, and can’t help thinking they all do too, but are forced to act it out anyway. Like in M. Night Shyamalan’s other movies, the characters are caricatures with notable quirks that end up as key elements to save the day or set up over-done punchlines. The story’s newspaper film reviewer, played by Bob Balaban, constantly lists movie clichés moments before they’re depicted on-screen, as if self-awareness makes a corny script forgivable. Of course, the callous critic is killed off dramatically. In case that ’s too subtle a message to Shyamalan’s haters, he actually plays the role of a humble yet important writer. His work is unappreciated now, but the mystical lady tells him that in the future it will inspire a nation to revolution. Oh, brother! I don’t know which is more painful, Shyamalan’s naivety or his ego.

There are no comments yet. You could be the first!