When watching M. Night Shyamalan's most recent film The Village, one will be reminded of other horror films. The Blair Witch Project comes to mind, an excellent thriller which tapped our fear of the unknown and perhaps even more so our fear of the wilderness. The woods are dark and evil, and it produces inhuman noises that terrify. From the opening scenes of The Village, we know the woods hide a forbidden secret.
That is the heart of The Village and the stark images are unforgettable. Grays and browns dominate this film, which takes place in an isolated 19th century town somewhere in Pennsylvania. Log and stone cabins transport us to another time, lit by the yellows of candles and kerosene lamps. People farm and garden on a daily basis, producing food which is consumed during communal dinners. Men's hair is long and uncut and shoes are crusted with mud. Women are adorned in long dresses, sitting by the warmth of pot-bellied stoves.
Shyamalan has skillfully transported us to another time and place, a grim fairy tale world where the big bad wolf is seemingly hiding within every shadow. The Village is a beautiful film, a Gothic play with minimal dialog and oppressive mood. Shyamalan has also cast extraordinary actors in this piece, most notably William Hurt giving one of his finest performances in years as the town elder. The characters are at times frustratingly passive, and you would like to see more work from such great talents as Sigourney Weaver, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody and Brendan Gleeson. Their presence alone, however, adds great interest to the eerie proceedings.
As in all Shyamalan films, there's one great performance which stands out, in this case Bryce Dallas Howard as the blind woman Ivy Walker, the heart and soul of the village. I have not seen this actress before, though have read she is the daughter of actor and director Ron Howard. It's a splendid performance, as strong as Haley Joel Osment's in The Sixth Sense. It's difficult to discuss this film without giving away some of the surprising plot developments, but Walker must eventually enter the woods, handicapped and alone, and the moments are almost unbearable.
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Article comments
1 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
chris, i really look forward to reading this, but it aint out in The Northern Ireland til a little later in the month, and i wanna go in as fresh as possible (even though i DID follow all those rumours about the "twist" a few months ago, which i really hope weren't true, cause A - it means i know the ending, and B - it sucked)
But i'll comment on the actual text soon, hopefully
2 - Chris Kent
Thanks El Senor Duke. I raced to this movie the day it opened because I did not want to hear about the "surprises" beforehand.
My review does not give away any surprises. It's an interesting film worth a bit of discussion. It was much better than I expected.....
3 - Tom Johnson
Ebert's review was spot-on: this was one of the worst, most disappointing movies I've seen in a LONG time. Terrible dialogue, stiff acting from all but a couple (Howard is amazing, despite the lameness of the movie itsel,) a plot so full of holes it was hardly a plot at all, and a twist so ridiculously stupid that it pretty much ruins the rest of the movie.
4 - Chris Kent
Tom, I disagree.
For me, it was not anywhere near the worst film I have seen in a long time. While I was disappointed with several aspects of the film, I still found it's creation of the hidden village to be fascinating. The dialogue was excellent, if a bit stilted due to the refinements of the odd society these residents were living in. I thought the acting was uniformly good (especially Howard, Phoenix and Hurt), though perhaps the actors should have been given more to do. It is a very passive film, but the atmosphere worked for me and I enjoyed how quiet this film was.
The twist was disappointing, but I was not as angry as you. I would have loved to see monsters, though the monsters I imagined were far more terrifying than anything the film could have created. Taken as a fairy tale, the story works, and what fairy tale DOESN'T have plot holes?
The Village was a fascinating mood piece and I enjoyed it immensely, mainly because I was NEVER sure what was going to happen next, and for me that is usually rare in a film. The twist bothered me a little, but the buildup to the twist was creative and suspenseful. This film was superior to Signs in many ways.....just not as good as The Sixth Sense.
5 - mfj
This was an absolutely HORRIBLE movie. Wtf was Shayamalan THINKING? He makes two great movies -- and then this stupid horse$hit? Please. I give it 1 star. TERRIBLY cheesy, pedestrian film that reminded me of a cheap porn flick at times.