As a comedy it's hugely optimistic and as a drama it's wonderfully emotional and that we're afforded the opportunity to make the call for one or the other for ourselves makes this a very clever film.
Lady in the Water (2006)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted: 202
Fresh: 48
Rotten:154
Average Rating: 4.2/10
Consensus: A far-fetched story with little suspense and unconvincing scenarios, Lady In The Water feels contrived, pretentious, and rather silly.
Theatrical Release:11-08-2006
Synopsis: M. Night Shyamalan (THE SIXTH SENSE, THE VILLAGE) continues his mission to revive the ancient art of storytelling--which he has diagnosed as a dying art--melding aspects of the fantastic with the... M. Night Shyamalan (THE SIXTH SENSE, THE VILLAGE) continues his mission to revive the ancient art of storytelling--which he has diagnosed as a dying art--melding aspects of the fantastic with the mundane, and bringing to life a mythology of his own concoction. Paul Giamatti (SIDEWAYS) is Cleveland Heep, the depressed caretaker of an apartment complex in suburban Philadelphia called the Cove--a location from which the film virtually never strays. He tends the homes of a host of loveable eccentrics, including Jeffrey Wright (SYRIANA) as a single dad, Sarita Choudhury (SHE HATE ME) and the director himself as brother-and-sister roommates, Bob Balaban as a cynical film critic, and Cindy Cheung as a college girl Cleveland befriends. When Cleveland is pulled from the pool by a mysterious young woman (Bryce Dallas Howard, THE VILLAGE) after a nasty bump on the head, he quickly discovers her true identity as a narf, one of an ancient race of water beings whose attempts at communication with humans have long ago ceased. As Cleveland attempts to return her to her world, uncovering the intricacies of the story from which she emerged and protecting her from the beasts that seek to thwart her, she helps him and many of the other residents find their true purpose in life, reaffirming the meaning it holds for them. Though the tale borders on overpopulation with many thinly drawn characters, and Shyamalan's own role is overtly reflective of the ego he is so often accused of, the tale manages to stimulate the imagination nonetheless. It achieves this by invoking universally affecting elements of myth and magic, and mesmerizing viewers with stunning photography by Wong Kar-Wai (CHUNGKING EXPRESS) regular Christopher Doyle. [More]
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bob Balaban, Jeffrey Wright
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Bryce Dallas Howard, Bob Balaban, Jeffrey Wright, Sarita Choudhury, Freddy Rodriguez, Bill Irwin, Jared Harris, Mary Beth Hurt, M. Night Shyamalan
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Screenwriter: M. Night Shyamalan
Composer: James Newton Howard
Studio: Warner Bros.
Reviews for Lady in the Water
This pretentious, humourless (except for a joke-about-a-joke centring on the film critic) movie is breathtaking in its absurdity.
There are so many things wrong with Lady that there just isn't enough space to go into them here.
If you place a premium on original vision and creative risk, then there is much pleasure to be had watching a born storyteller juggle more balls than even he can carry.
Paul Giamatti is superb ... and his performance single-handedly rescues Lady in the Water from one star ignominy. Frankly, you'll marvel at his ability to keep a straight face as he delivers Shyamalan's pretentious dialogue.
What was [Shyamalan] thinking? This isn't just duff, it’s career-threatening catastrophic.
There are some laughs to be had, albeit not always in the right places. A resounding plop.
Beautifully made and thoroughly intriguing, but it feels made up as it goes along.
... to put it bluntly, badly paced and completely trivial, not to mention utterly juvenile.
This could have made a decent movie but the mythology comes so thick and fast that it mixes to a slurry as you watch.
What is most annoying about "Lady" is that no one ever considers the possibility that nothing magical is actually occurring.The film starts out silly and just gets sillier.
While I love where Night's head and heart are at, I think he tried to communicate them in a way that was clumsy, cumbersome, lacking in suspense and menace, and frankly, unexciting.
Ignore the critics on this movie. Yeah, I am one. Which means I'm telling you to ignore me, too.
The film is a mess, a ramshackle affair. Its silliness cannot sustain itself.
Latest News for Lady in the Water
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M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening won't reach theaters until June 13, but 20th Century Fox has released its first teaser -- and it's just a click away! More...
March 30, 2007:
Mark Wahlberg to Star in Shyamalan's "Happening"
Retired rapper and underwear model Mark Wahlberg's cinematic hot streak looks set to continue at least into next year: According to Variety, the "Shooter" and... More...
February 27, 2007:
2006 Razzie Awards Announced; "Basic Instinct 2" Leads the Pack
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January 23, 2007:
Razzie Nominations Announced!
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