To get the most out of a movie by M. Night Shyamalan you have to meet the filmmaker halfway. A convoluted fairy tale that makes a few crucial missteps, Lady in the Water requires more work than most of his films, yet if you give it a chance you’ll be able to appreciate the film as an enchanting exploration of storytelling magic. Paul Giamatti plays a dour apartment-complex superintendent who discovers a woman (Bryce Dallas Howard) living in the swimming pool. As he and some of the residents become embroiled in her fantastical world, they resemble an excited gaggle of kids sitting on carpet squares at a library’s story hour. If you’re willing to let your cynical guard down, you could join them.
