Plot twists and M. Night Shyamalan go hand in hand and The Village is no exception. Hell, before the movie even began the audience was asked not to reveal the ending so as not to spoil the movie for others, which is one major factor making this a very hard review to write, since any number of key words could ruin this movie for you.
The Village introduces us to a small community of people whom have managed to find some level of comfort in their isolated village despite the knowledge that menacing creatures live in the surrounding woods. With the threat of the unknown and seldom seen creatures looming over the tiny settlement no one dares enter the woods for fear of their life and the thought of disturbing the seemingly peaceful balance they have achieved with “those we don’t speak of.”
But that balance soon finds itself teetering as marks of the “bad color” begin to appear on doors and tiny animals are found skinned and maimed leaving the small community in a state of hysteria, but there are more than scares to be found in The Village as Shyamalan ventures into the realm of romance as he uses love to guide his story, which ultimately ends with a very Shyamalan-esque twist.
While The Village is by no means a great film, it does have several redeeming qualities most of which stem from some awesome performances, primarily that of Bryce Dallas Howard, daughter of famous director Ron Howard. Before going into this film I had a preconceived idea that Howard was simply riding the coat tails of her father and found her way into the lead role of a highly anticipated film, but now that I have seen what she is capable of that is no longer my feeling.
Howard plays Ivy Walker, a young blind woman, daughter of one of the town’s elders Edward Walker played by William Hurt, and the ultimate love interest of another of the film’s key characters, and as much of the film follows her around she manages to steal every scene she is in.
Through the use of great acting, sound effects and erratic behavior Howard brings you into the life of a strong-willed blind woman and keeps this movie from falling flat on its face, but she is not the only one who deserves mention as both Adrien Brody and Joaquin Phoenix [who seems to get better and better with each movie he is in] also turn in worthy performances.
Where the movie fails is a lot of its cheesy dialogue as it forces some great actors to act wooden and carry themselves off as emotionless characters when dealing with each other in day-to-day life. It is only when the tension rises that this area of the movie improves, and improve it does.
Shyamalan has never been accused of not being able to hold an audience captive when he wants to, whether it is the ghost under the sheet, aliens beating at your door or in this case terrifying creatures painting your doors with the “forbidden color.”
The Village is a mixture of good and bad, as a thrilling movie it manages to succeed in multiple scenes, but on a whole you may be a bit disappointed in the ultimate twists and turns the movie takes. I don’t think anyone will come out of the theaters hating this film, but I also believe many will come out thinking they would have been just as impressed if they had waited for it to come out on DVD.
