So, with a mix of melee fighting skills and a generous dose of acidic water, Merrill manages to successfully defeat the alien.
In all the commotion, the alien knocks over a glass of water on the table (which there are many laying around, thanks to Graham’s germaphobic daughter, played by a young Abigail Breslin), which drips down his skin and appears to have a deadly effect on him.
The film’s climax sees the family in seemingly better times having survived the night of the predicted invasion, until they discover an intruder in their midst: one of their extraterrestrial visitors, holding Graham’s son Morgan (Rory Culkin) with sinister intent.
Suddenly, Graham has a flashback of the last thing his late wife said to him: “Tell Merrill to swing away,” prompting him to tell his high school baseball star brother, Merrill (Joaquin Phoenix), to grab his old slugger and take a good swing at the alien.