Ill admit, its been pretty easy to criticise M Night Shyamalan over the past few years, but like many others I thoroughly enjoyed Sixth Sense, Unbreakable and even Signs. Despite things getting predictable and slightly ridiculous in 2004s The Village, the follow up Lady in the Water looked promising, with Bryce Dallas Howard as the lead. Sadly, it was the moment Shyamalan succumbed to his own delusion. Lets cut to the main gripe I have with the film. Bryce Dallas Howards character Story is on Earth to find the author whose book will change humanity for the better. Who is the writer of this fabled book? Yes, M Night Shyamalan of course, acting again in a role that should never have been his. To add further confirmation of his arrogance, Bob Balaban plays a film critic who is portrayed as egotistical and self assured and who eventually comes to a gruesome end. The death of a film critic as well as Shyamalan including himself in such a prominent role represents the state of how Shyamalan perceives himself to be. No humble, modest director would cast him or herself in such a glaringly artistic role. It needed a better actor to convey the story that need to be told. A wasted opportunity. While M. Night Shyamalan has gone on to make worse films, it was Lady in the Water that really cemented his decline.