PHILADELPHIA — For Philadelphians, perhaps there is no director more divisive than M. Night Shyamalan, the horror filmmaker who grew up in Wynnewood and lives in Willistown Township. Some of us love him ("The Sixth Sense" ranked third on our Best Philly Movies list) but others haven't forgiven him for white-washing "The Last Airbender." But regardless of how Philly feels about Shyamalan, it's clear that he loves the city and this region, since the majority of his work was filmed and set here.

Whether you're a die-hard fan or a frustrated hater, Shyamalan is arguably the most famous Philly filmmaker. Incorporating feedback from The Inquirer staffers, we took a look back through his career to revisit the twist endings, jump scares, big reveals, and even bigger disappointments over the last couple decades. (Spoilers ahead!)

15. 'After Earth' (2013)

Humanity no longer calls Earth home in this universe, but Jaden Smith calls Will Smith dad in an uneven accent. The father is a fearless fighter in a literal sense because he can hide from the space monsters that hunt humans by smelling their fear-omones; the son is a cadet trying to prove himself. When they crash land on the now-contaminated Earth, dad breaks his legs and son has to traverse many miles to the tail of the ship, which holds their distress beacon. For its big budget and slick wrapping, this perilous journey is a forgettable, cliché snooze. It felt easier to root for the kid to fail than actually care about whether he'd overcome his fears and make pop proud. (Predictably, he does.)

14. 'Praying with Anger' (1992)

Shyamalan's debut, a low-budget semi-autobiographical film that he self-financed while a student at NYU, would probably be at No. 15, but a young debutante filmmaker deserves our grace. An Americanized Indian kid studies abroad in India and works through culture shock, anger management, and grief over his father's death. Foreshadowing a career of acting in his own movies, the director stars in this slow-moving, almost anthropological exploration of cultural differences geared toward white, mainstream audiences in the U.S. The film's sepia world is rife with stereotypes and reductive observations: "Indians are the most passionate people. When they're praying, they're devout. When they're angry, they're furious." Still, some cleverness sprouts as he lays the foundations for signature motifs in his subsequent work — faith, violence, family and ghosts.

13. 'Lady in the Water' (2006)

It's not meant to be a comedy, but the film sure feels like a parody: Nymphs called Narfs need to reconnect with humans, but they're chased by Scrunts, scary green wolf-like creatures, even though the fantasy law enforcement body the Tartutic should stop them. Bryce Dallas Howard plays Story, a once-in-a-generation Madam Narf, who has to be seen by some man before she can be free; a process that somehow also involves an eagle. Shyamalan plays a writer, the chosen man, because he's penning a book that will influence a future president, but also get him killed for his political beliefs. Paul Giamatti carries the film (impressive given the sprawling, goofy script) as the stuttering superintendent trying to solve the puzzle. He's the only reason the film is not dead last.

12. 'The Last Airbender' (2010)

Understandably called Shyamalan's worst by some Inquirer staff, his widely panned live-action adaptation of the beloved cartoon "Avatar: The Last Airbender" departs from the rich original in ways that make little sense, and even the elaborate sets and fight scenes can't salvage the botched storytelling and paltry acting. The baffling choice to cast white actors in the main roles for Aang (the East Asian monk who controls all four elements) and his pals Sokka and Katara (based on indigenous Arctic communities like the Inuit) while South Asian actors played the villainous Fire Nation left fans yearning for better representation. The show's inherent playfulness was stripped for dull seriousness with little depth despite themes — like children's trauma, fear and grief — that the director has expertly handled before. (Netflix's recently released live-action series notably differs.)

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