Signs

M. Night Shyamalan stepped in front of his own camera here: he plays Ray Reddy, the man whose car killed Graham’s wife, by far the longest part he has taken in his own work. The creatures never speak, and the knot is untied not by the invasion but in the scene where Graham faces the man responsible for his wife’s death. How much of the creature to show was settled early. Interviewed in the release year, Shyamalan pointed to its clicking language and said that is his special effect for ninety percent of the film. The first clear look at one arrives second hand, in amateur birthday-party footage replayed on the news. Mark Ruffalo had been signed as Merrill; surgery for a benign brain tumour forced him out and Joaquin Phoenix took over a week before shooting began. Shyamalan traced his choice of Mel Gibson to Lethal Weapon, saying Gibson did emotional work there with no business in an action movie. It opened on 2 August 2002 to 60.1 million dollars and reached 408.2 million worldwide on a 72 million budget. A good fit if you want the clearest sight of the creature to come off a camcorder. Not for you if you want the military and scientific side, which reaches the Hess living room only on television.