THE VILLAGE

by Joe Barber on Aug.25, 2004, under Joe Barber's Movie Reviews

MOVIE REVIEW: “THE VILLAGE”

Screenwriter and director M. Night Shyamalan made an impressive “debut” the
the movie big leagues in 1999 with his suspensful ghost story “The Sixth
Sense.” Skillfully acted by a superb cast led by an understated Bruce
Willis, the movie did an excellent job of pulling the wool over the eyes of
everyone (including your humble reviewer) until its final twist.
Shyamalan’s next film, “Unbreakable”, reunited him with Willis in the story
of an average man who suddenly realizes he’s been blessed-or cursed-with
superhero-like invunerability and must decide how or if he’ll make use of
his gift. Unfortunately, the plot’s use of comic book collecting and
mythology as a backdrop turned off folks expecting a second “Sixth Sense”
and the movie became a box office disappointment.

Shyamalan’s 2002 effort, “Signs”, starred Mel Gison as a former minister
facing a challenge to his faith after the loss of his wife. He and his
remaining family members find their world turned upside down when crop
circles and other symbols start appearing all over the world and turn out to

be the signal for an alien invasion. Though it posessed some intriguing
elements, “Signs” fell apart ln mid-story and delivered a silly,
unsatisfying ending.

So, after on great movie, one misunderstood movie and one very uneven movie,

wherre does Shymalan’s latest scare-fest, “The Village” fall? For me,
somewhere bwtween “Unbreakable” and the second half of “Signs”. In other
words, once you spot the now traditional twist, you’ll likely fall into one
of two groups: those who sit in the theatre saying “Oh, really?” and those
who say “Oh, darn.” (Feel free to fill in your favorite declareative
statement.)

Set in a late 19th Century Pennsylvania village, the movie focuses on a
community that has declared a seemingly unbroken truce with the “creatures”
who live in the deep woods that surround their community. At least a couple

of generations have grown up in this place, knowing and understading the
rules that govern the truce. They include no displaying the bad color of
read and never wandering into the woods. Unfortunately, these rules also
cut the town off from towns just beyond the woods. Though considered evil
and dangerous by the villagers, the towns also contain such advances as
medicine, which can prevent death from simple diseases.

As the movie opens, a small child has died because of a lack of medication.

A brave young villager , Lucius Hunt (Joaquin Phoenix) asks the council of
elders for permission to venture into town for medical supplies, but is
refused. Another corageous soul in the village is Ivy (newcomer Bryce
Dallas Howard, the daughter of director Ron Howard.) She finds herself
drawn to the shy Lucius and boldly declares her love for him. That
declaration becomes one in a chain of events that will test Ivy’s love for
Lucius, the truce and the very exsistance of the village.

Though Shyamalan does a good job of establishing a certain mood, his basic
storyline feels contrived and less than original. He’s been rewarded with
several solid performances by such talented old prros as William Hurt, as
the leader of the elder’s council and Sigourney Weaver as Lucius’ school
teacher mom. Howard also delivers a remarkably assured and confident
performance for someone so young in age and experience. If Shyamalan had
given as much care to developing his overall plot as he did to developing
the love story subplot between Phoenix and Howard, the movie would be on par

with “Sixth Sense.”

I won’t play spoiler here and reveal the twist. I’ll simply leave you with
a piece of advice that’s about as old-and much more on target-than this
hollow scare-fest: “You pays your money, you takes your chances.” In this
“Village”, however, the house wins, you lose.

MPAA RATING: PG-13 for violence and scarry special effects.
JOE’S RATING: ONE AND ONE-HALF STARS.