My review on the movie "The Village"

viper75

Well I just came back from the movies with my girlfriend. We went to go and see the movie "The Village" thinking we were going to see a scary movie...little did we know it was anything but that. The movie had some twist to it and it was very unpredictable. I'm not going to write what the movie is about...but in my personal opinion the movie sucked!!! For anyone that's planning in seeing the movie save yourself the money or go see another movie. I give the movie a -1.

New User

Cool. Thanks for the review. I was thinking about going to see that movie but with all "horror" movies these days, I'm worried that they're going to suck and not be scary. And, with movie tickets going for almost $10, and me being a cheapo, I do try to filter out the stinkers.

Haven't seen too many good horror movies within the last 10-20 years. I sort of like "The Others". I also liked the movie where there was a video tape and if you watched it you would die within a week (forgot the name of the movie). It was okay...sort of left me hanging in the end so that sort of ticked me off. But, it had some freaky moments. A girl I know said that she had a hard time sleeping after watching this movie. What a wussy (sp?).

Oh I just thought of a pretty good horror movie that came out within the last 3-5 years. "House Of 1000 Corpses"? I think thats the title. The movie by Rob Zombie. I like it.

Movies that really got me were ones from the late 70s and early 80s. Halloween, Friday The 13th, The Fog, .... The music scores from these films freaked me out.

What has been worth the money, with respect to horror movies, within the last 10 years? Any opinions or favorites?

awaisyboy

The Village
Reviewed by: Glen Bucher
Rating: 8 out of 10
Movie Details: View here


Cast:
Bryce Dallas Howard as Ivy Walker
Joaquin Phoenix as Lucius Hunt
Adrien Brody as Noah Percy
William Hurt as Edward Walker
Sigourney Weaver as Alice Hunt
Brendan Gleeson as August Nicholson
Cherry Jones as Mrs. Clack
Celia Weston as Vivian Percy
John Christopher Jones as Robert Percy
Frank Collison as Victor
Jayne Atkinson as Tabitha Walker
Judy Greer as Kitty Walker
Fran Kranz as Christop Crane
Michael Pitt as Finton Coin
Jesse Eisenberg as Jamison

Critique:
Writer/director M. Night Shyamalan has had a string of successful movies with interesting story lines and unexpected plot twists. With The Village, he again gives the audience a mystery that many will enjoy trying to figure out before the closing credits roll.

The Village is a puritanical, isolated place set in 1860's Pennsylvania. Surrounding the village is a dark forest in which resides "those that we do not speak of" who the town elders have made an agreement with. None from the town will enter the forest and none of the creatures will enter the town. This agreement has worked for generations, but for some mysterious reason animals are now showing up dead. Finding the animals, skinned but not eaten, has made many in the town worried that the truce might be coming to an end.

Lucius Hunt (Joaquin Phoenix) is intent on leaving the village, through the forbidden forest, to get medical supplies from a nearby village. All of his requests have been denied by the elders who do not wish to break the pact. However, he has discovered that Noah Percy (Adrien Brody), a mentally challenged peer of Lucius, was able to wander into the forest and not been harmed. He thinks that Noah's slow witted innocence is what prevented him from being harmed and that Lucius' own purity of purpose will provide him safe passage past the creatures.

Telling any more of the story will give too much away, but Joaquin Phoenix gives a great performance as a young man resolved and determined to risk his life for the good of his community. The main problem is that the film uses a stilted, but thoughtful, vernacular. It might take some people a little time to get comfortable with their dialect, but after that, the quality of the acting stands out. William Hurt, as town patriarch Edward Walker, gives a very strong performance as the town's spiritual leader. The rest of the cast is also solid but Bryce Dallas Howard, as Hurt's daughter Ivy Walker, gives an outstanding performance. She plays an inspirational, blind, and determined woman in a role that should get her noticed.

Shyamalan has yet again been able to create an eerie and foreboding atmosphere that always has you suspecting something sinister is just about to happen. His pacing of the film is slow but deliberate. It gives the actors plenty of time to develop character as well as letting the dramatic music of James Newton Howard (who has been used on all of Syamalan's other films) envelope the viewer. For people that are action junkies, the pace might be too slow, but if you enjoy bonding with the characters on screen, it is very satisfying.

The cinematography is classic Shyamalan; the camera is constantly looking at everyday things in a way that makes them appear unnatural, with large sweeping shots of what lies just at the edge of site, and deep closeups of the characters as the events unfold around them.

Who should see this movie? If you enjoyed all of Shyamalan's other work, you will like The Village. There is solid plot and several twists that are unexpected. As a horror movie, it is more creepy than overtly scary, but it does have its frightening moments. A very strong and powerful love story does play out, but it is a serious one and surrounded by the mystery of the village. One or two humorous moments do not make this a comedy, so if you are looking for a laugh you need something else. If you want to use your mind, then you will enjoy figuring out where the story is leading you as well as giving you plenty to talk about afterwards. Overall, The Village is a good solid movie with plenty to offer if you are patient enough to get it.

viper75

I personally give the movie 2 thumbs down!!!

garv221

viper75: lol...

I did the same thing saturday night. After a long day of fishing and catching nothing but a buzz, me and my girlfriend went and seen the village....I also give it two thumbs down. I was expecting a scary movie but found nothing but a dumb movie with drawn out scenes that tried to be suspenseful..If my girlfriend wouldn't have cared I would of rather slept in the movie parking lot in my car :P ..Simple as plain, don't see it...