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Avg. Critic Score: 36 out of 100 Generally unfavorable reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
13 OK for kids 13+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 70
    Washington Post | Desson Thomson

    If the ultimate goal is entertainment, then Lady in the Water enthusiastically rises to the task. In a movie laden with enough symbolism, shamanism and mythic lore to make Joseph Campbell dance a tribal jig, Shyamalan never forgets to have fun. Read full review

  • 60
    The Hollywood Reporter | Kirk Honeycutt

    Shyamalan does project genuine menace and suspense into this mundane location, especially in nighttime scenes. But the magic that would transport you from reality into fantasy is missing. Read full review

  • 50
    San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle

    Has the strengths and weaknesses of a one-man show. Read full review

  • 50
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    You leave Lady thinking there are still voices in Shyamalan's head well worth a listen. Read full review

  • 50
    Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

    Shyamalan's most alienating and self-absorbed project to date. Read full review

  • 50
    The New York Times | Manohla Dargis

    One of the more watchable films of the summer. A folly, true, but watchable. Read full review

  • 50
    USA Today | Mike Clark

    The character played by lead Paul Giamatti is a dead-on Shyamalan protagonist: emotionally distanced and something of a train wreck. Read full review

  • 40
    Variety | Brian Lowry

    A ponderous, self-indulgent bedtime tale. Awkwardly positioned, this gloomy gothic fantasy falls well short of horror. Read full review

  • 30
    Los Angeles Times | Kevin Crust

    There is something bizarrely compelling about the movie. It's slower than watching a train wreck but invokes that same level of disbelief. Read full review

  • 10
    Wall Street Journal | Joe Morgenstern

    This cloying piece of claptrap sets a high-water mark for pomposity, condescension, false profundity and true turgidity -- no small accomplishment for the man whose last two features were the deadly duo "Signs" and "The Village." Read full review

View more reviews for Lady in the Water on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says OK for kids 13+ More soggy than scary. Still, not for youngsters.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that the movie features a fierce dog-like creature most often indicated by shadows or red lights (his eyes). His attacks (he crashes through glass, drags off a girl, and kills a character) are rendered in quick cuts, hectic camera movements, and victims' screams. The creature is eventually ripped apart by monkey-like creatures in another dark, loud, and chaotic scene. The film includes a couple of jump scenes. A few characters smoke cigarettes.
  • Families can talk about Heep's dedication to figuring out the story/puzzle, as this shows his generosity as well as his need to work through his own past trauma. How does Story inspire Heep and the other tenants? How do the diverse characters work together toward a common goal? How does Story's story become everyone's?
The good stuff
  • message true3 Positive messages: Disparate apartment dwellers work together to help a nymph-like girl return to her storybook home.
What to watch for
  • violence false3 Violence: Monstrous, wolflike CGIed dog (covered in grass, with red eyes and big fangs) attacks and drags off Story, and ferociously kills a character (in briefly violent images and cuts).
  • sex false0 Sex: Story's nakedness is mostly out of frame; Anna calls Heep a "player."
  • language false0 Language: Minor profanity ("ass," "damn").
  • consumerism false0 Consumerism: Not an issue
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false3 Drinking, drugs and smoking: "Slackers" in apartment complex smoke cigarettes even though it's against the rules (they keep a heaping ashtray outside their door).
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

Looking for more reviews? Movies.com Critics Say:

Dave White

2.5

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… convoluted, weird and silly. Read full review See Dave White's on MOVIENAME on Movies.com

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