Lady in the Water

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Lady in the Water

Lady in the Water theatrical poster
Directed by M. Night Shyamalan
Produced by Sam Mercer
Jose L. Rodriguez
M. Night Shyamalan
Written by M. Night Shyamalan
Starring Paul Giamatti
Bryce Dallas Howard
Jeffrey Wright
Bob Balaban
M. Night Shyamalan
Music by James Newton Howard
Editing by Barbara Tulliver
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date(s) July 21, 2006
Language English
Budget $75,000,000
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Lady in the Water is a 2006 thriller/fantasy film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan.

Contents

[edit] Plot summary

After falling and knocking himself unconscious on the slippery pavement beside the swimming pool of a Philadelphia apartment building, the building caretaker Cleveland Heep (Paul Giamatti) finds himself rescued by a delicate and mysterious young woman named Story (Bryce Dallas Howard). Cleveland tells Story that she must return home, and takes her outside (while she is asleep) to breathe fresh night air. Suddenly Heep sees something moving around in the bushes. It growls, waking Story up, and starts chasing them. They are so frightened that Story screams all the way to the door, but they escape.

Come morning, Heep calls in a local animal control officer, who is puzzled by his description of the lurking animal: a large, wolf-like creature with a coat that looks like grass. While alone in Cleveland's apartment, Story discovers his journal, and in it his horrible secret; that he was once a medical doctor but gave it up – along with his sense of purpose – after his wife and child were murdered. While talking to a young Korean tenant, Young-Soon Choi (Cindy Cheung), Cleveland asks her the meaning of "narf", a term Story uses to name herself. Young-Soon mentions, in reply, an old Korean fairy tale her great-grandmother had told her and her mother before her about such a creature. Because it was told long ago, she has forgotten it completely. With the help of Young-Soon's mother and Young-Soon herself as translator, Heep finds out that narf is a term for a rare type of nymph or water-faerie. A narf is occasionally sent from the "Blue World" to "awaken" a human (called a "vessel") who will help change the world for the better. He also discovers there are lupine creatures that try to kill any narf that leaves its world, called "Scrunts". The Scrunts are strong, vicious, and smart. Furthermore, they appear to be covered with grass and can flatten themselves to hide completely from human view. In order to control these and other spirits, there are laws in this world upheld by three bloodthirsty, monkey-like creatures called "Tartutic", which are the only things that a scrunt fears. After discovering this, Heep asks Story for the description of her human "vessel" so he can help find it; Story only knows that her vessel is a writer and that once she finds her vessel, she can be returned home by a large eagle called "The Great Eatlon".

Heep asks tenants if they are writers, and he eventually finds out that Vick (M. Night Shyamalan), a young man who lives with his sister, Anna Ran (Sarita Choudhury), is presently writing, but suffers from writer's block. Believing that this tenant is Story's vessel, Cleveland arranges a meeting between the two. When he meets Story, Vick feels an "awakening" that clears his mind and allows him to complete his book, which is a compendium of his apparently clear-sighted political paradigm. Now that Story's task is accomplished, she is free to return to the Blue World.

As she attempts to go home that night, the Scrunt attacks her, breaking the law, and badly injures her. Heep rescues her, and the two of them escape into the apartment building. Judging that taking Story to his house is not worth the risk of meeting the Scrunt again, Heep instead takes Story upstairs to the apartment of Vick and his sister. When Story falls ill, Mr. Heep again turns to Young-Soon. He learns that a Scrunt carries a poison with the potential to kill a narf. A mud called "Kii", given to a narf before she leaves the Blue World, will neutralize the poison. Cleveland then dives to the bottom of the pool, where he presumes that Story had been living, and finds the Kii, almost drowning in the small room she had excavated, becoming trapped due to the faulty handle she had constructed. The Kii heals the narf, and Story survives to attempt her departure again.

During Story's healing process, Vick asks Story to foretell the events that will occur after he publishes his book, titled "The Cookbook". A prophecy follows:

"A boy in the Midwest of this land will grow up in a home where your book will be on the shelf and spoken of often. He will grow up with these ideas in his head. He will grow into a great orator. He will speak and his words will be heard throughout this land and throughout the world. This boy will become leader of this country and begin a movement of great change. He will speak of you and your words. Your book will be the seeds of many of his great thoughts. It will be the seeds of change..."

Later, Vick asks Story to answer these questions: How can his book effect such change without something dramatic taking place to have it gain attention? Why did the boy not search to meet him? Vick knows the book has things many people will not like hearing; therefore he asks if someone will kill him because he wrote this book.

Story reveals that this boy will not be able to meet Vick, because Vick will have been killed by someone angered by his book. She reveals that Vick's sister will have seven children, of whom Vick will live to see two. She adds that though humans consider themselves alone, that which each one does affects all. Heep refuses to hear his own future from Story when she offers to reveal it.

Heep questions Young-Soon's mother for more information and finds that there are humans with powers capable of helping a narf. The specific roles of the human helpers in the bedtime story are a Symbolist, a Guardian, a Guild, and a Healer. Needing to find these people to help Story, Heep consults someone he believes to be an expert on story-writing, a movie critic, Mr. Farber (Bob Balaban), who has just moved in as a tenant. Farber's comments on the probable casting of each role and the unoriginality of film-making lead Heep to his conclusions as to the identities of the helpers. Heep assumes that Mr. Dury (Jeffrey Wright) is the Symbolist (interpreter) because of his ability to decipher crossword puzzles; that Mrs. Bell (Mary Beth Hurt) is the Healer because a butterfly was attracted to her; and that he is himself the Guardian because of Story's trust in him. He assumes also that a group of smokers (played by Joseph Reitman, Jared Harris, Grant Monohon, John Boyd, and Ethan Cohn) are the Guild because they always sit together, talking as their minds wander, and seem to have no other role in life.

The Guild throws a party that the movie critic Farber believes is in his honor, with which the tenants are to be distracted while Story's friend the Great Eatlon comes for her; but things go wrong. The supposed Guild members are unable to have the band start their music on time, and they leave their posts to help a sick guest. Vick's sister, who is watching for the Scrunt with a handheld mirror, is jostled, whereupon her mirror breaks, leaving her incapable of seeing the monster. This leaves Story completely vulnerable to the Scrunt, who strikes when everyone is momentarily distracted by a popping balloon. Heep saves Story from being dragged away by the Scrunt, but she is badly wounded, leaving her unconscious and near death. The helpers doubt that they are truly the ones meant to help Story because nothing is working out right. When they ask Heep why he sought them out for their specific roles, he tells them that Mr. Farber guided him, telling him how to identify these types of people or groups of people. The tenants question how a person could be so arrogant as to assume that he was able to accurately predict the thoughts and actions of another human being.

The Scrunt enters the building during the party because the supposed Guild members watching the door fail to make sure it is closed. Shortly after this, Mr. Farber walks into a hallway occupied by the Scrunt. He sees it and makes a speech to the effect that in a family film having details parallel to those of his own story, in which no one has died, a disliked side-character (himself) is not going to be killed, but will narrowly escape and learn a lesson. As Farber turns to run, the Scrunt attacks and kills him.

Heep realizes that he has not properly identified Story's helpers. The supposed Symbolist, Mr. Dury, realizes that his son Joey is the true Symbolist; finding deep, hidden meanings in the images on cereal boxes. Joey, in turn, identifies the true Guild: seven "sisters" — so called because each one is someone's sister, regardless of her relationship with the other six. They are Vick's sister, Young-Soon (whose older sister married a dentist), and the five daughters of a neighbor, the Torres Sisters (played by Maricruz Hernandez, Carla Jimenez, Natasha Perez, Monique Cornan and Marilyn Torres). Required also are two witnesses; a man who has no secrets (thanks to the loquacity of his wife), Mr. Bubchik, and a man whose opinion Cleveland Heep respects, Mr. Leeds. When Mrs. Bell, whom Heep thought was the healer, reveals that the symbolic butterfly only arrived when Cleveland approached her, Heep comes to the realization that he, himself, is the Healer. With the help of the true Healer and Guild, Story is healed and revived.

The entire party then take her out to the poolside. By this time, Story's hair has become ash-blonde, contrasting with her first appearance (wherein her hair is black) and the scenes showing her in Cleveland's shower-bath (wherein it is dark red); apparently this indicates her progressively greater frailty. As the people approach the pool, the Scrunt attacks, but is held a captive by the gaze of Reggie (Freddy Rodriguez), a strong-armed athlete now revealed as the Guardian. Urged by Cleveland, Reggie advances toward the scrunt, which backs away from him. Abruptly the Tartutic emerge from the nearby hedgerow, pounce on the Scrunt, beat it, and drag it back into the bush. The Great Eatlon successfully carries Story back to the Blue World.

[edit] Production

The movie was originally planned for Disney, as Shyamalan's previous four films. However, after showing Disney executives the script, they decided to pass on the project. Shyamalan was reportedly angry about the rejection and presented the project to Warner Bros, which agreed to move forward; the events that lead to the making of the movie were featured in a book, The Man Who Heard Voices, by Michael Bamberger.[1][2][3]

Shyamalan, who shoots in and around his hometown of Philadelphia, established a production facility at the Jacobson Logistics warehouse site in nearby Levittown, Pennsylvania, where sets for the apartment complex and a half city block of row houses were built. Occasional footage was shot inside the overflow area of the warehouse. Most of the filming was completed after work hours.

[edit] Cast

Actor Role
Paul Giamatti Cleveland Heep/The Healer
Bryce Dallas Howard Story
M. Night Shyamalan Vick Ran/The Vessel
Sarita Choudhury Anna Ran/Guild member
Cindy Cheung Young-Soon Choi/Guild member
June Kyoto Lu Mrs. Choi
Bob Balaban Harry Farber
Jeffrey Wright Mr. Dury
Noah Gray-Cabey Joey Dury/The Symbolist
Freddy Rodriguez Reggie/The Guardian
Bill Irwin Mr. Leeds
Mary Beth Hurt Mrs. Bell
Tovah Feldshuh Mrs. Bubchik
Tom Mardirosian Mr. Bubchik
Jared Harris Goatee Smoker
John Boyd One-Eyebrow Smoker
Ethan Cohn Glasses Smoker
Grant Monohon Emaciated Smoker
Joseph D. Reitman Long-Haired Smoker
Maricruz Hernandez Perez de la Torre Sister #1/Guild member
Carla Jimenez Perez de la Torre Sister #2/Guild member
Natasha Perez Perez de la Torre Sister #3/Guild member
Monique Curnen Perez de la Torre Sister #4/Guild member
Marilyn Torres Perez de la Torre Sister #5/Guild member

[edit] Soundtrack

Lady in the Water
Lady in the Water cover
Soundtrack by James Newton Howard
Released July 18, 2006
Genre Soundtrack
Label Decca
Producer Amanda Ghost
Tom Herbers
Oliver Leiber
Professional reviews
James Newton Howard chronology
Freedomland Lady in the Water Blood Diamond

The soundtrack for The Lady in the Water was composed by James Newton Howard. The last four tracks are non-soundtrack songs from singer/songwriter Amanda Ghost, Indie rock band A Whisper in the Noise and rock 'n' roll revivalists Silvertide. Each of the four songs was originally written by Bob Dylan. Howard won the IFMCA Award for Best Film Score for Lady in the Water in 2006, as well as the awards for Best Original Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film, and Best Single Cue of 2006 for "The Great Eatlon"[4].

Track Listing

  1. "Prologue"
  2. "The Party"
  3. "Charades"
  4. "Ripples In The Pool"
  5. "The Blue World"
  6. "Giving The Kii"
  7. "Walkie Talkie"
  8. "Cereal Boxes"
  9. "Officer Jimbo"
  10. "The Healing"
  11. "The Great Eatlon"
  12. "End Titles"
  13. "The Times They Are A-Changin'" – A Whisper In The Noise
  14. "Every Grain Of Sand" - Amanda Ghost
  15. "It Ain't Me Babe" – Silvertide
  16. "Maggie's Farm" – Silvertide

[edit] Reception

Lady in the Water was critically panned around the time of its release. Of Shyamalan's role in the film, Mark Kermode said, "It's like someone pouring petrol over their heads and setting fire to themselves."[5] Variety magazine wrote a scathing advance review that appeared on July 16, 2006. Common complaints about the film were that little effort was put into getting the viewer to believe in the world, that few moments of the film could be taken seriously, and that Shyamalan was using the film as a form of self-indulgence; instead of having a minor cameo, as in most of his films, Shyamalan cast himself as a visionary whose writing changes the world, and included a film critic -- portrayed as arrogant, self-assured, and passive -- who is despised by the other characters, and who ultimately is violently killed. Many reviewers attacked this self-indulgence: Manohla Dargis of The New York Times wrote of the story, "Apparently those who live in the water now roam the earth trying to make us listen, though initially it’s rather foggy as to what precisely we are supposed to hear — the crash of the waves, the songs of the sirens, the voice of God — until we realize that of course we're meant to cup our ear to an even higher power: Mr. Shyamalan."[6] Frank Lovece of Film Journal International said, "Fans of actor Paul Giamatti or of filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan may get something out of Lady in the Water, a fractured fairy tale about a water nymph who comes to a Philadelphia apartment house to deliver an important message. Anyone else is likely to be perplexed by the muddled mythmaking or actively astonished at the self-indulgent ego of a writer-director-producer who casts himself in the role of a visionary writer whose martyrdom will change the world."[7] Michael Medved gave Lady in the Water one and a half stars (out of four) calling it, "... a full-out, flamboyant cinematic disaster, a work of nearly unparalleled arrogance and vapidity", adding that, "... Lady in the Water is all wet..."[8] Also panned was the fact that the film was based on a bedtime story Shyamalan told to his children; Pete Vonder Haar of Film Threat commented: "If Shyamalan is going to use his kids as a focus group for future projects, maybe he should start making movies for Nickelodeon already and stop wasting our time."An ironic comment, considering Shyamalan's next project would be a live-action adaptation of Nickolodeon's Avatar: The Last Airbender. [9] CNN's Tom Charity, among many others, has called Lady in the Water the worst film of 2006.

Teaser poster for the film.
Teaser poster for the film.

It was listed by Variety as one of the ten "biggest (financial) losers" of 2006.[10]

Not all reviews were negative. Harrison Scott Key wrote in World magazine that, "The plot turns into a puzzle... and it's quite fun to watch. Ultimately, the movie has us asking one of the most important questions an audience can ask: What happens next? And that makes it a good film".[11] Wesley Morris of The Boston Globe wrote that though the film is "built on too much ponderous self-regard ... [t]here is a good chunk of Lady in the Water that is simply too well made and affectingly acted to dismiss as a mere exercise in arrogance".[12]

It won two Golden Raspberry Awards for Worst Supporting Actor (M. Night Shyamalan) and Worst Director (M. Night Shyamalan). It was nominated for two more Razzies including Worst Picture and Worst Screenplay (written by M. Night Shyamalan).

[edit] Box office

In its opening weekend (21-23 July 2006), the film grossed a total of $18.2 million, placing third in the United States box office results for that weekend. It was M. Night's lowest opening for any of his five major films. Due to negative reviews and poor word-of-mouth, its second week fell sharply to $7.1 million, pushing its total to only $32.2 million. Its third weekend was no better, falling another 62.1% to $2.7 million. As of September 14, 2006, its total was $42.285 million.[1] In addition, the film only made $30.5 million in the foreign box office, pulling its tally to approximately $72.785 million internationally. The movie had an estimated budget of $70 million[2] for production and a further $70 million[3] in advertising costs.

[edit] DVD releases

This movie was released simultaneously on DVD, HD DVD, and Blu-ray from Warner Home Video on December 19, 2006.

The extras included on the DVD are:

  • Lady in the Water: A Bedtime Story
  • Reflections of Lady in the Water 6-Part Documentary
  • Additional Scenes
  • Auditions
  • Gag Reel
  • Theatrical Trailer
  • DVD-ROM PC Weblink
  • English, French & Spanish subtitles

[edit] Trivia

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

[edit] Related books

Lady in the Water, A Bedtime Story children's book
Lady in the Water, A Bedtime Story children's book

[edit] Children's book

Shyamalan, who credits the development of the movie to a bedtime story he told his children about what happens in their pool at night,[13] wrote the 72-page children's book Lady in the Water: A Bedtime Story (Little, Brown, New York, ISBN 0-316-01734-5) to coincide with the movie. The book's illustrations were done by Crash McCreery. It was released on the same day as the film, on July 21, 2006.

[edit] The Man Who Heard Voices

The Man Who Heard Voices (Gotham Books, New York, ISBN 1-59240-213-5), by Sports Illustrated writer Michael Bamberger, recounting the making of the film, was released July 20, 2006.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Brian Lowry, Lady in the Water, Variety, July 16, 2006, Accessed May 10, 2008.
  2. ^ Peter Travers, Lady in the Water, Rolling Stone, July 20, 2006, Accessed May 10, 2008.
  3. ^ Sink or Swim, Entertainment Weekly, July 7, 2006, accessed May 10, 2008.
  4. ^ IFMCA Award (2006) "Awards and Winners 2006"
  5. ^ BBC - Five Live MARK KERMODE
  6. ^ The New York Times (July 2006) "Finding Magic Somewhere Under the Pool in Lady in the Water" by Manohla Dargis
  7. ^ Film Journal International Lady in the Water, by Frank Lovece
  8. ^ Michael Medved's Eye On Entertainment - Lady In The Water Review
  9. ^ Film Threat Review
  10. ^ Variety.com - 2006: Hollywood diagnosis, Sun., Dec. 24, 2006.
  11. ^ World (Aug. 19, 2006): "A thrillertale: Middle Earth and Philadelphia collide in Lady in the Water", by Harrison Scott Key
  12. ^ The Boston Globe (July 21, 2006): "Fractured Fairy Tale", by Wesley Morris
  13. ^ JoBlo.com (June 26, 2006) - "Early Lady Review!" by Mike Sampson

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Films written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan