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LADY IN THE WATER |
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By : Suzanne Philips |
Movie Reviews List | |
| LADY IN THE WATER Written and Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan Starring: Paul Giamatti (Cinderella Man), Bryce Dallas Howard (The Village), Jeffrey Wright(Shaft) Rated: PG-13 Running Time: 1 hour 50 minutes LADY IN THE WATER tells the story of Cleveland Heep, a middle aged man with a severe stutter who is the super at an apartment complex in Pennsylvania. One night he discovers a young lady in the pool and she helps him to realize things about his life and his purpose here on Earth. This film is a charming, very quaint film which is based on a children's bedtime story that Shyamalan heard as a child of sea nymphs and scary beasts and the power of humans to affect change. What I really liked about this film is its simplicity. At heart it is truly a moral tale of human beings who live their lives only concerned about themselves and the power they show when they make a choice to come together as one to help out with a cause. It is about redemption, making hard life choices and little things that you take for granted every day. I like that the director doesn't feel the need to beat you over the head with the moral but lets it evolve throughout the film and simply guides the viewer where he wants them to go. The pace is slow and methodical but it is one of those films with many complex layers. You can simply view it as a fable and be entertained, or you can choose to look into the deeper meaning and perhaps learn something about your own life. Shyamalan also uses some funny digs at typical Hollywood films which provide a nice bit of levity to the material. The acting is really first rate and, again, quite subtle. Giamatti is wonderful as Heebs and Howard does look radiant as the sea nymph, Story. A great cast of character actors help to make it a lovely film. 3 out of 5 |
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