A new film “Signs” released this month with Mel Gibson is based upon a modern myth. Farmers and assorted pranksters created a virtual subculture based upon “crop circles” they created beginning in the early 80s. Some of these jokers later confessed, but a cult following developed based upon the hoax never the less.
Today despite research, which has proven the best evidence cited by believers is false; they persist in their theories about the origin of these “signs” and even network on the Internet. Some typical claims are that these crop circles are linked to UFOs, energy vortexes, ancient religious sites and an assortment of supernatural phenomenon.
Filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan’s who directed “The Sixth Sense,” based his latest movie, “Signs” upon this fanciful myth. And of course he chose the most sensational explanation, which is that crop circles are actually signposts to guide aliens from outer space. He uses this premise to put his characters through an interesting series of trials and an ultimate test of faith. The film has stimulated interest in crop circles and no doubt fueled the cult following of this contemporary mythology.
