Critical Approaches to the Films of M. Night Shyamalan represents the first serious academic engagement with auteur director M. Night Shyamalan and his work. The essays, including contributions from established film scholars David Sterritt, Murray Pomerance, Emmanuel Burdeau, R. Barton Palmer, Matt Hills, and Katherine Fowkes, explore the Hollywood blockbusters from The Sixth Sense to The Happening in terms of their themes, aesthetics, and marketing. Taken together, the collection recognizes and explores Shyamalan s "star status" and offers the concerted analysis that this cultural phenomenon requires.

"A thoroughly impressive and dynamic study of one of today's most controversial, slippery, and stylish filmmakers. Contributors to this anthology come from a wide range of disciplines and shine light on places that seemingly deny the specter of interpretation. The first of its kind, this book will doubtless pave the way for future scholarship on Shyamalan and remain a formidable touchstone." - D. Harlan Wilson, associate professor of English, Wright State University and author of Technologized Desire: Selfhood & the Body in Postcapitalist Science Fiction

"Love them or hate them, it is impossible to overlook the films of M. Night Shyamalan. This excellent, thoughtful, and timely study brings together the writings of renowned scholars and critics of film to put into context one of the most intriguing and provocative directors of the new millennium." - Ernest Mathijs, associate professor, University of British Columbia

"The design of this book is excellent, the essays as a whole are accessible and intelligent, and the collection represents a real contribution . . . Weinstock has done a superb job of providing broad and deep coverage of Shyamalan's major representative films." - Tony Magistrale, professor and chair of English, University of Vermont