Lady in the Water is the new film from writer/director M. Night Shyamalan. M. Night first became widely known in 1999 following the film The Sixth Sense which was a huge international success. His films are known for magical and supernatural elements along with surprising twists.

In this edition of Entertainment we hear from M. Night Shyamalan about the process of writing the story and how he thinks the final film turned out. BBC film reviewer Mark Kermode also gives his opinion of the completed film.

Before you listen to the programme, look at the comprehension questions below. Check your understanding by trying the quiz in the Extras section below where you can also download the transcript.

1: Where did M. Night Shyamalan get the idea for Lady in the Water?
2: How many times did Shyamalan rewrite the script before he was happy with it?
3: How does Shyamalan feel about the finished film?
4: What does Mark Kermode think of the finished film?

Listen to the programme
	Lady in the Water

Words and expressions from the programme

a twist
when something is revealed or something happens in a film that is completely unexpected and unpredictable. A twist, for example, could be when someone the audience thinks is a good character actually turns out to be an evil person.

the script
the words and actions of a film when they are written down

a draft
a version of a script which is in development. When a film is written the script will go through several drafts before the 'final draft'.

shooting a movie
making a film

to be enchanted by something
to find something magical, interesting and enjoyable

the cast and crew
phrase for the people involved in the making of a film, the 'cast' are the actors and actresses, the 'crew' are the technical staff

a standing ovation
when the audience at a film, play, concert etc. stand up and applaud and cheer

nobody in their right mind would ...
a critical expression which means that it would be foolish to do something

Example
Nobody in their right mind would try to swim across the English Channel without training first!

going down in flames
a dramatic metaphor to describe something that is failing very badly

waffle
writing or speech that goes on for a long time without saying anything important, useful or interesting

Programme script (pdf - 20k)