Blu-ray Review: Signs

DVD Reviews

By Jeff Swindoll Jun 13, 2008, 13:43 GMT

Mel Gibson fends off space invaders in this film from M. Night Shyamalan. However, the movie is actually about some other subjects that come from above - such as faith in God.

Seems like an odd combination, aliens and God, but the combination seems to gel, that is if you've not seen it before.

Graham Hess (Mel Gibson) lives on a farm with his son Morgan (Rory Culkin), daughter Bo (Abigail Breslin), and brother Merrill (Joaquin Phoenix). Graham used to be a priest but when his wife Colleen (Patricia Kalember) is killed in an accident involving the local vet, Ray Reddy (M. Night Shyamalan); he begins to question his faith in God and leaves the church. Suddenly crop circles appear in the corn fields around Graham's house and strange lights appear in the sky in various parts of the world. The entire world is confused by what all these signs could be leading to. Soon it's very obvious what exactly is making the crop circles and they don't appear to be friendly. Signs is another hit film from director M. Night Shyamalan who has made the twist ending into one of his trademarks. It's been quite some time since I've watched it so I looked at it this time around with a more critical eye. I recall the first time I found it full of suspense, but knowing what was coming this time I wondered if the alien angle wasn't a bit much. The special effects have also not aged well and some of the seams show (the alien hand under the door looked really bad to me this time). However, there is a good performance from Mel Gibson and the rest of the cast. Gibson interacts well with the kids (Culkin and Breslin) and there are some genuine heartwarming moments in there.

There’s also some good comedy was some suspenseful angles are softened with a bit of comedy (the ex-priest attempting to sound tough as he and Merrill run around the house and tin foil hats – nuff said.). I think that maybe Shyamalan's tricks also begin to show a bit this time around and I began to wonder if he couldn't make a film that lacked a twist ending or paid “homage” to Hitchcock. Signs is still a good movie though, but it has more impact when watching it the first time around. The Blu-ray transfer is excellent and it brings over all of the special features from the previous special edition DVD. Signs is presented in 1080p anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Special features are presented in standard definition. They include 7 minutes of deleted scenes, the 58 minute “Making Signs” documentary, 2 scenes with a storyboard option, and the 2 minute first alien movie from Shyamalan (terrible!). Signs is a good film, but don’t expect the suspense that you felt watching it the first time around. The good stuff is still there (the acting, comedy, faith) though. I did watch it all again so I guess that says that the movie, no matter if you know the outcome, can still hold the attention.

Signs [Blu-ray] is now available at Amazon. Visit the DVD database for more information.

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