Signs

M. Night Shyamalan’s “Signs” is a heart-pounding ride for about 90 minutes, a pure popcorn thriller. Then the bottom falls out and the film goes into meltdown. That’s the curse of Shyamalan’s “The Sixth Sense,” his great 1999 film featuring Bruce Willis that built suspense until the film’s one final twist. Shyamalan now needs to stop trying to top his masterpiece and go find a great drama to apply his talents. That’s …

…delivers another thrill. There’s a fundamental shift about 45 minutes into the film that gives you hope that Shyamalan really has pulled this off, developed some cinematic misdirection of colossal proportions. He’s left plenty of signs — clues — especially with one of young Bo’s peculiar habits. Instead, the tension builds to a finale that includes a film homage completely out of left field, limping to an ending that simply doesn’t hold any water.