Lady in the Water, or Why I Love and Hate Shyamalan All at the Same Time
M. Knight Shyamalan is the most visually talented of all the directors in his age group working today. There I said it. Nobody got hurt. The batch of brilliant directors all in their late thirties/early forties that includes: Kevin Smith, Paul Thomas Anderson, John Favreau, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, and M. Knight, is the most amazing group since, Lucas, Spielberg and Coppola.
I adore all these young directors. They speak to me, and each in their own way is genius. But Shyamalan is head and shoulders above the rest, visually. First let's do the review, then I'll get to my frustrations.
Lady in the Water is a beautiful film, both literally and figuratively. The brooding yet glossy style that Shyamalan has been working on throughout all his films, is near perfection here. As usual he has gathered some fantastic performers to fill his movie, Paul Giamatti and Bryce Dallas Howard in main roles, and Bob Balaban, Bill Irwin and Sarita Choudhury in smaller ones. The acting is top notch, the characters lovable, the story intriguing. If you don't bring too much baggage or expectation with you, this movie will be a joy to watch. So what bugs me about M. Knight?
Shyamalan seems to be infatuated with storytelling. To the point that he can't just tell a story, he has to tell a story in a fascinating or different, or difficult way. Unlike Tarantino, who is fond of non-linear films, Shyamalan's films are in order, just complex. That is not to say that I like simple movies, or dislike difficult ones. I adore (and am preparing a review of) Magnolia from P.T. Anderson. That movie is nothing if not complex. What I have a problem with is when that adherence to non-traditionally structured plots becomes a hindrance to good storytelling. I think that might be the case in "Lady in the Water." I loved this film, and hope for many more classics from Shyamalan. It is that hope that leads me to question why he has to maintain the feel of "Amazing Stories" or "Twilight Zone" if you prefer.
Why must all of his films wink at us? And make no mistake about it, that's what they're doing. Six times during "Lady" I noticed a boom mic dropping into the frame. It's not completely unheard of for something like that to make it through to the final film, everybody makes mistakes, but six times is almost too many to be believed. They are so blatant, I can't imagine that someone as meticulous as Shyamalan is, could not notice. And if he did notice, does that mean they were supposed to be there? What is he trying to do, remind us it's just a movie? This turned into something of a rant. That is not what I intended. Here's what I intended:
1. To raise the question of Shyamalan's intentions and future direction.
2. To point out I love his work, but worry about his future work.
3. To ask which one of the above mentioned directors, you think will ultimately have the best career.
I am not speaking necessarily of box office OR critical acclaim, but some of both. Who from that group will in 50 years be looked on as the master? Drop a comment, opinion, rant, random cursing below. Thanks for listening, see you at the movies.
I adore all these young directors. They speak to me, and each in their own way is genius. But Shyamalan is head and shoulders above the rest, visually. First let's do the review, then I'll get to my frustrations.
Lady in the Water is a beautiful film, both literally and figuratively. The brooding yet glossy style that Shyamalan has been working on throughout all his films, is near perfection here. As usual he has gathered some fantastic performers to fill his movie, Paul Giamatti and Bryce Dallas Howard in main roles, and Bob Balaban, Bill Irwin and Sarita Choudhury in smaller ones. The acting is top notch, the characters lovable, the story intriguing. If you don't bring too much baggage or expectation with you, this movie will be a joy to watch. So what bugs me about M. Knight?
Shyamalan seems to be infatuated with storytelling. To the point that he can't just tell a story, he has to tell a story in a fascinating or different, or difficult way. Unlike Tarantino, who is fond of non-linear films, Shyamalan's films are in order, just complex. That is not to say that I like simple movies, or dislike difficult ones. I adore (and am preparing a review of) Magnolia from P.T. Anderson. That movie is nothing if not complex. What I have a problem with is when that adherence to non-traditionally structured plots becomes a hindrance to good storytelling. I think that might be the case in "Lady in the Water." I loved this film, and hope for many more classics from Shyamalan. It is that hope that leads me to question why he has to maintain the feel of "Amazing Stories" or "Twilight Zone" if you prefer.
Why must all of his films wink at us? And make no mistake about it, that's what they're doing. Six times during "Lady" I noticed a boom mic dropping into the frame. It's not completely unheard of for something like that to make it through to the final film, everybody makes mistakes, but six times is almost too many to be believed. They are so blatant, I can't imagine that someone as meticulous as Shyamalan is, could not notice. And if he did notice, does that mean they were supposed to be there? What is he trying to do, remind us it's just a movie? This turned into something of a rant. That is not what I intended. Here's what I intended:
1. To raise the question of Shyamalan's intentions and future direction.
2. To point out I love his work, but worry about his future work.
3. To ask which one of the above mentioned directors, you think will ultimately have the best career.
I am not speaking necessarily of box office OR critical acclaim, but some of both. Who from that group will in 50 years be looked on as the master? Drop a comment, opinion, rant, random cursing below. Thanks for listening, see you at the movies.
posted by Daddy Rogue at 2:30 PM
1 Comments:
Someone I forgot to mention in this list of directors (but who does definately fall into the age group, and promise of his career) is Steven Soderbergh. Just wanted to throw that in there (mostly for Kyle)
Post a Comment
<< Home