M. Night Fans » Lady in the Water

Understanding Shyamalan’s ‘Lady In The Water’

Rohan — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 07:02:27 +0000

Once man and in those in the water were linked. They inspired us. They spoke of the future. Man listened and it became real, but man does not listen very well. Man’s need to own everything led him deeper into the land. The magic world of the ones that lived in the ocean and the world of man separated. Through the centuries their world and all the inhabitants of it stopped trying. The world of man became more violent. War upon war played out. As there were no guides to listen to… Now those in the water are trying again. Trying to reach us. A handful of their precious young ones were sent into the world of man… They need only be glimpsed and the awakening of man will happen, but their enemies roam the land. There are laws that meant to keep the young ones safe, but they are sent at great risk to their lives. Many do not return, yet still they try…. Try to help man, but man may have forgotten how to listen.

These are the first lines once the film Lady In The Water begins. A film written and directed by Mr. M.Night Shyamalan, based on a bedtime story he used to tell his daughters. Shyamalan as a writer and director could put the words about “man may have forgotten how to listen” at the end of his film, yet he chose to put it in the beginning. He put it in the beginning of his film so man can listen and comprehend the meaning of what’s the film about and to undertand the moral of his bedtime story.

Lady In The Water is a fantasy film released in 2006 and received some unfavorable reviews from the film critics. They didn’t only trashed the film, but they disrespected M.Night Shyamalan as well. Not only the film critics are the ones who I like to blame, but some audiences as well are to blame. I understand that everyone is entitled to their opinion, but let’s not forget what the film is about. This is one of the main reasons I am writing this, for I have been hearing things whenever a discussion takes place about this film. Some claim that it is a stupid film. Didn’t made any sense. And some claim that they liked the story and didn’t like how Shyamalan portrayed himself through out the film as a writer whose book is going to change the world. Someone will read it and will become the leader.

This project was Shyamalan’s riskiest move as a filmmaker. “The Man Who Heard Voices or How M.Night Shyamalan risked his life on a fairy tale,” written by Michael Bamberger was published after M.Night Shyamalan’s departure with Disney. This film was originally set up at Disney, M.Night Shyamalan departed from the studio over “creative differences”, and brought it to Warner Bros.

I have been thinking to write something about this film for over three years, but it’s the time that never gave me the permission to write. I am trying to bring the spotlight mainly on the moral of the story to those who doesn’t listen or repudiates to listen. Please do not find this irreverent. I am aware that there are those who perceive the moral. See, if you watch films with an open mind and heart you get the point and you will understand the moral of the story. It can be an action, drama, adventure or fantasy anything. A filmmaker like Shyamalan brings meaning to his films as well. Every M.Night Shyamalan film in a way is unique. And his purpose in this world as a writer and director is not only to entertain, but to teach something valuable about religion, fate, love, life and purpose.

I don’t find anything obtuse about his writing, because as an aspiring screenwriter I sit and write what I feel and what I learn from life. No one can stop me from writing and no one can stop Shyamalan from writing and directing what he wants to tell, for he knows deep in his heart and mind that the story he is telling is important to others because it is important to him. Lady In The Water is a simple story. A fairy tale about a man name Cleveland Heep, a maintenance man who discovers a young woman in the swimming pool of his apartment complex. Gradually, he and his neighbors learns that she is a sea nymph whose life is in danger from a vicious, wolf-like, mystical creature that tries to keep her from returning to her home, blue world.

In this film, Shyamalan is trying to tell us that we are all connected. These are the exact words of “Story” in the film. Meaning that we are all on the same boat and this fairy tale also provides a message about purpose. We all have a purpose in this world. All of us has something important to do and due to these unfavorable reviews many didn’t see the film. Lady In The Water deserves to be viewed with an open heart.

There are plenty of good films and bad films that I can write a list about. Some are huge projects and some are simple like Lady In The Water. A simple and beautiful fairy tale written by a man with heart. It is an important film not because I am a Shyamalan fan or because you are reading this on his largest fansite on the net today. It is important because it carries a message that wakes the inner human. It’s an introduction of yourself to yourself.

It angered the critics because Shyamalan is pointing his finger at them in a way in this film. And what you have read and what you have heard about this film negatively is wrong. Yes, I would make some changes here and there if I would be the director, but again if you think about it every artist has his or her own unique artistic stroke. Overall, Lady In The Water is a film with heart. A daring film, a daring tale. It is important for us. I have always been and always will defend a film like Lady In The Water because it tells us something about life. It is that prescription written to heal the world. Our world still needs to be healed. We are the young ones who can fix it. Let us not forget who we are. We are all connected regardless of race, religion and culture. We can make that difference not only through films, but through any kind of field. We can listen. Continue to listen and let’s not forget how to listen.

M.Night Shyamalan Interviews

Rohan — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 21:22:54 +0000

Thanksgiving is over and hope you guys had a good one with your relatives and friends. This weekend I have been searching the net for some important Shyamalan interviews and I selected 3 good ones which are not that long, but they are useful if you are an aspiring writer or director. The first video is from Devil Premiere which we never posted before. And the last 3 videos are 3 part interviews with Rajeev Masand where Shyamalan talks about his personal life a little bit, The Happening, Lady In The Water, The Last Airbender, The Sixth Sense and all other controversial remarks against him. Check them out. They are not new interviews, but I find them interesting. And make sure to post your comments and let us know your thoughts.

Thanks to ChannelApa for the following video.

The following are 3 part interview with Rajeev Masand. Enjoy!

DEVIL – “A serviceable burst of high-end hokum…”

Rohan — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 20:12:57 +0000

DEVIL from the mind of M.Night Shyamalan – snuck into theatres this friday September 17th into theatres without advance critic screenings. Was there something to worry about or does it deliver decent B-movie chills? Reviews all over the map.

“On paper it’s a ridiculous premise, but in execution works surprisingly well. At the very least, you’ve never seen another film quite like it.”

— Luke Y. Thompson, E!

“…nothing very special or original, but it gets the job done briskly and economically.”

— Dennis Harvey, Variety

“A serviceable burst of high-end hokum…”

— Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times

“It’s not great, but it’s not bad, and the fellow who foisted the The Happening, Lady in the Water and The Last Airbender on the faithful would take that praise any day.”

— Roger Moore, Chicago Tribune

Shyamalan embraces inner kid

Rohan — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 02:45:18 +0000

M.Night Shyamalan is known for spine-chilling thrillers with ghoulish final-frame twists like in The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable and The Village. But director M Night Shyamalan says he loved getting the chance to be a big kid again when making his latest film ‘extravaganza’ The Last Airbender.

Based on a hit children’s TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender, the film in which the world is at war and its fate lies in the hand of one small boy. ‘I think each artist thinks of themselves at a certain period of their life and a little bit of me perceives me as a ten-year-old a lot,’ Shyamalan tells AAP from his home in the US.

‘You see it, even in my darker pieces – there’s always a perspective from that age group. Whether it’s Unbreakable when he sees his father in a certain way, obviously in The Sixth Sense and also in Signs which tells the kid’s point of view of what’s going on.

‘It’s always feathered in there. ‘The Last Airbender tells the story of a primitive world which is being threatened with extinction by the Fire Nation, who aims to annihilate the more peace-loving nations of Air, Water and Earth.

But then a ‘waterbender’, who is still learning to control her powers, discovers the long-lost Aang – not only the world’s last airbender, but an avatar sent to save the earth.

It was Shyamalan’s own children who introduced him to the captivating TV series which inspired the big-budget, CGI-assisted, 3D film. ‘Usually people are getting stabbed in all of my movies,’ Shyamalan laughs.

‘It was fun to make a movie that the whole family was a part of from beginning to end. ‘(My kids) were hanging out (on set) and they’re friends with the cast and when I come home, the cast is at my house – it was like that kind of atmosphere.

‘It was a very emotional, fun time – kind of being a kid and doing something for the family and families and thinking with a different part of my brain. It was a soul-enriching kind of thing.’ Wrapping the movie and saying goodbye to the young cast was a tough day, Shyamalan says.

‘It’s always emotional at the end of a movie, but that one in particular was hard,’ he says. Shyamalan is hoping to get the green light on a sequel to The Last Airbender, but he doesn’t think his darker film-making days are over. ‘As the kids grow older and become teenagers, I’ll start to make movies for them at that age, and soon they’ll be adults and we’ll be making only thrillers again,’ he laughs.

‘But it’s nice to make movies for your kids while you have kids.’ The director always had it in his mind to create an alternate world on film, but he acknowledges that in transforming the hit TV series for the big screens he is under a lot of pressure from hard-core fans to get it right.

‘They know the width of the arrow on the head and all that stuff,’ he says. But it was a story that should always have been told on a grand scale, he argues.

‘The ideas were so cinematic … it felt like it was almost too big for what it was before,’ he says. Shyamalan says he had always considered CGI effects to be his ‘arch nemesis’, but he embraced them for this film and soon learned to love them.

‘I’m glad I don’t see it as an enemy anymore,’ he says.

‘I’m a technophobe a little bit. I think it’s just my old curmudgeon ways of not wanting to change, more than anything else.

‘But spending all this time working with CGI I’ve really come to love it as an art form … I think I’ve learned a new tool for the belt.’ Shyamalan, who describes himself as a ‘minimalist film maker’ doesn’t envisage a CGI-dominated movie like Transformers on his horizons.

‘I think when I go back to doing other movies I’ll be able to use it as a tool, but it will still have a minimal part of the story-telling process,’ he says.

M.Night Shyamalan answers back to a reporter!

Rohan — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 01:23:28 +0000

“I think if I thought like you I’d kill myself. Everything you said is the opposite of my instinct as an artist. The way you just thought, I literally would kill myself,” Shyamalan said. And that’s just the start of a near 3 minute answer. – Watch the rest of the press conference below.

10 Questions for M. Night Shyamalan

Rohan — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 01:47:55 +0000

TIME’s “Gilbert Cruz” had the chance to sit with director M.Night Shyamalan one on one as M.Night Shyamalan answered 10 questions from fans around the United States. M.Night talks briefly about race controversy and why he directed The Last Airbender.

Composer James Newton Howard All Access Interview

Specter — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 14:24:33 +0000

He’s been the primary composer on all of M. Night’s films starting with The Sixth Sense. Currently writing the music for The Last Airbender, composer James Newton Howard invites you into his studio for front row access of his Yamaha photo shoot. Learn what inspires him when scoring such blockbusters as The Sixth Sense, and his process for scoring films like Unbreakable, Signs, The Village, Lady in the Water and more, while working with Night.

Shyamalan Donates to Rec Center

Specter — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 18:00:34 +0000

Work could begin soon on a Bristol Township recreation and veterans center paid for through state grants and donations from movie director M. Night Shyamalan.

With a $75,000 grant awarded through the office of state Sen. Tommy Tomlinson, R-6, and a $50,000 check to Bristol Township from Shyamalan, who produced “Lady in the Water’’ in the township, renovations could start within the next 90 days, said Bob White, director of the county redevelopment authority.

A former schoolhouse on Coates Avenue was closed several years ago and sits on the 8.5-acre lot planned for the center. The township council agreed to pay the school district $250,000 for the property in 2004.

Mayor Sam Fenton said he is hopeful the center will someday house summer activities for kids.

[PhillyBurbs.com]

‘Lady in the Water’ Score Used in ‘The Golden Compass’ Trailer

Dr Malcolm Crowe — Mon, 21 May 2007 21:46:31 +0000

New Line Cinema recently released the teaser trailer to their movie “The Golden Compass” today, which happens to feature some music from James Newton Howard’s score to “Lady in the Water.” Although niether “The Golden Compass” or it’s score have any connections to Shyamalan or James Newton Howard, I still found it quite interesting, and a true testament to the beauty of the “Lady in the Water” score.

[View "The Golden Compass" Trailer Here"]

‘Lady in the Water’ Score Wins 3 IFMCA Awards!

Dr Malcolm Crowe — Sat, 24 Feb 2007 20:39:21 +0000

The members of the International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) have announced the winners of the 3rd Annual IFMCA Awards, honoring achievements in film and television music in 2006.

Leading the pack with the most wins is James Newton Howard, for his score to M. Night Shyamalan’s “Lady in the Water” which picked up three awards including Best Film Score of the Year, Best Original Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film and Individual Cue of the Year for “The Great Eatlon.”

Although the actual movie was not a critical favorite, Mr. Howard has continually done superlative work for Mr. Shyamalan, having scored his last four films. “Lady in the Water” is available on CD from Decca Records.

Here is the complete list of winners:

FILM SCORE OF THE YEAR
* Lady in the Water (James Newton Howard)

FILM COMPOSER OF THE YEAR
* Alexandre Desplat

BEST NEW COMPOSER OF 2006
* Brett Rosenberg (Half Light)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DRAMA FILM
* The Black Dahlia (Mark Isham)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A COMEDY FILM
* The Holiday (Hans Zimmer)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ANIMATED FILM
* Happy Feet (John Powell)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ACTION/THRILLER FILM
* The Da Vinci Code (Hans Zimmer)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A FANTASY/SCIENCE FICTION/HORROR FILM
* Lady in the Water (James Newton Howard)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR TELEVISION
* Planet Earth (George Fenton)

BEST SINGLE CUE OF 2006
* “The Great Eatlon” from Lady in the Water (James Newton Howard)

FILM MUSIC RECORD LABEL OF THE YEAR
* Intrada (Douglass Fake, producer)

From: FilmMusicCritics.org

M. Night Fans » Lady in the Water

Understanding Shyamalan’s ‘Lady In The Water’

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