M. Night Shyamalan Movies Ranked

I don’t really feel like going out of my way to sit through After Earth.  I haven’t seen The Visit, but I’ve heard it’s not bad.

9. The Happening

2008

**********

An absurd movie that’s almost unintentionally funny to be worthwhile.

 

8. Lady in the Water

2006

**********

A classic case of a great premise with poor execution.  Would have been ok if 1) It didn’t have that straw critic who actually made some good points 2) Night hadn’t cast himself as a writer “who will change the world” 3) The Scrunt was actually a credible threat.  Still the Scrunt has to be one of the most lovably inept movie monsters.  Or you could interpret it as a DnD session (the Tartutic are obviously the DMs), and the person playing as the Scrunt simply isn’t taking it seriously at all.

 

7. The Last Airbender

2010

**********

I thought that, because Night had apparently run out of ideas, he would be good at adapting something.  However, he has a unique dry style that doesn’t translate to many things.  This adaptation is flat and phoned in; the animal familiars from the show are more developed than any human in this movie.  Still, it’s a faithful and earnest adaptation that has a unique interpretation of the visuals.

6. Signs

2002

**********

I thought this movie was great when it came out, but the absurd premise became apparent once the novelty wore off.  It’s very well-directed and has some of the best jump scares.  One of the few movies that’s equal parts

5. Glass

2019

**********

An interesting movie, but not quite as satisfying as it could have been.

4. The Village

2004

**********

A good thriller despite the asinine social/unethical social experiment it’s based on.  Gets a bad rap.

3. The Sixth Sense

1999

**********

A solid thriller with a twist.  The part that really unnerves me is the Munchausen-by-Proxy scene.

2. Split

2016

**********

A surprising comeback with a twist that was truly satisfying.

1. Unbreakable

2000

**********

A down-to-earth interpretation of superheroes with a great score.

 PROGRESSION

BONUS ROUND!*

 *based on my familiarity