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Lady in the Water. A new tale from M. Night Shyamalan (Writer/Director) who is still trapped, unfairly, in the net of Sixth Sense. That movie, his debut, put him in the terrible predicament of trying to hit it out of the park with every follow up release. This is his fourth movie since then and he has yet to do anything remarkable when compared to The Sixth Sense. So why the constant comparison? I believe the fault lies in the studios.

Based on a story Shyamalan wrote for his children, Lady in the Water is a  well spun yarn about a sea nymph (Bryce Dallas Howard) from an eastern children’s fable who is trying to get back to her world. She is befriended by a simple and humble apartment janitor (Paul Giamatti) who quickly discovers that he is in a come-to-life bedtime story. Along with other tenants in his building they must now help the water woman get home while protecting her from a deadly creature that is trying to prevent her return.

Lady in the Water sort of bobs around for 100 minutes or so. It doesn't ride any huge waves. It certainly doesn't sink. It just floats on this fairy tale story line. There are no twists, no thrilling moments, and no edge of your seat suspense. Just a legend acted out by likable characters. That is where I believe M. Night Shyamalan’s strength lies. His writing. He uses witty dialogue and crafty concepts to capture the audience. And he directs his writing perfectly. Problem is, the trailers and previews have us expecting one thing, only to be sold something else. So regardless how great the movie might be you still feel cheated.

I think the main issue is that M. Night Shyamalan wants to make chilling movies. He wants to thrill or shock an audience and he just doesn’t have that ability. Or if he does he isn't showing it in his latest endeavors. So I wish he or they or whoever would stop trying to lure us in with trailers promising scary intensity and just simply promote his films for what they are. Fables with a few jumpy moments thrown in for fun. Moments that are not totally clever or thought out but put in to try and live up to the hype. It’ s like if you were sitting in your chair reading this review right now and I snuck up behind you and banged two pan lids together. You would probably jump. But that does not give me the right to start my review by saying. "Read this review.. if you dare!" All I did was startle you with an irrelevant noise when you least expected it. Big deal. 

Also, M. Night has gone from small cameos to a full on major character in this film. He is not a bad actor but when compared to others in the movie his scenes take on a local theater feel. He should stay with his talent. Writing. He tells amazing stories. Be it stories that don't always translate to film. And that was the main issue here. Since we are on the topic of acting we should mention Paul Giamatti. He is fabulous as the stuttering servant with a secret and continues to make a name for himself as a character actor. But it just wasn't enough to salvage the movie as a whole.

The Lady in the Water is rated PG-13 for some frightening sequences. Very few to be honest. If anything it lives up its original intent. That is as a bedtime story perfect for putting most to sleep. If you have never seen a trailer or do not know the history of Shyamalan you might actually enjoy it. Still I give it 2 out of 5 as a movie. Too bad it wasn't released as a book. That would have been a better call. With a look at The Lady in the Water, I’ m Matt Mungle

The Mungle 7/19/2006

Matt is a member of the North Texas Film Critics Association (NTFCA) and hosts the weekly syndicated Indie Rock Radio Show Spin 180. Plus with his wife Cindy they do a weekly radio feature, The Mungles on Movies. For additional reviews and interview clips visit the website www.mungleshow.com"