This movie, shot in Pennsylvania, is a beautifully shot piece of work. The look is very agrarian and pioneer, like something out of a history book about Jamestown or Plymouth Rock. The lack of red in the movie and prevalence of yellow give the whole town a sort of toned down earth tone look to it.

Though taking place in 1897 the town has a sort of pre-industrial look to it. We see no items or references to turn of the century America. It appears as if their utopian society is part Quaker, part Shaker, and part Amish.

The star of the film is Bryce Dallas Howard, daughter of director Ron Howard, who gives an Oscar caliber performance. Her face at times appears young and childlike, reflecting the innocence of the town she lives in. Other times she appears much older and hardened, secure of herself in times when she needs to be tough.

The other characters, even Phoenix, are there mainly for the support and the story develops around her. She becomes a catalyst for the story to move forward, and her character becomes a metaphor for the entire village; living in isolation, blind to the outside world.

One thing about Shyamalan, which is both a blessing and a curse, is that his movies are getting known to have twist or surprise endings. People have come to expect that and are disappointed when the twist doesn't measure up to their expectations of the movie.

The weakness in the movie is that it is marketed as a horror movie, which it is not. Though there are occasional scares and places to make you jump, the movie is more about how the villagers view themselves and the outside world.

There are two major plot twists in the film. Though not entirely shocking, they are framed in such a way that you only see a little bit at a time over many long minutes. This gives you a little view at a time, like trying to guess what a wrapped present is. First you shake, then you pull the wrapping away a bit at a time until the whole thing is exposed. Sometimes you guess right from the start, and sometimes even those little peeks don't give you the full answer until you have the whole thing unwrapped.

Originally titled The Woods the name was changed to shift focus back onto the center point of the story, the village. Rightfully so, because this movie isn't about what lurks in the woods, or what is beyond that place that we are comfortable, but is about how we sometimes lock ourselves in. To protect us from what see as real threats and what we think may real hurt us. And sometimes those same fears are different to different people.

Four out of Five Stars.