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THE VILLAGE (2004) (***1/2)

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Director M. Night Shyamalan has now created a portfolio of films that can be his own worst nightmare. Critics were very polarized about this film. Really a love-it-or-hate-it venture. I think many people brought expectations into the film and were left unsatisfied by the twists. However, I disagree. Like Shymalan’s previous films, the twists are all based on character and theme. This time the twists aren’t as surprising, but they’re still very thought-provoking.

Set in a Puritanical community in a valley in the woods, the town elders led by Edward Walker (William Hurt, THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST) have struck a deal with the creatures living in the woods. The villagers will not venture out as long as the creatures do not venture in. Quiet-spoken and brave Lucius Hunt (Joaquin Phoenix, SIGNS) wants to travel into the towns to get medicine for the village, but the elders won't let him go, especially his mother Alice (Sigourney Weaver, ALIEN). Lucius is also secretly in love with a smart, tomboyish blind girl named Ivy (Bryce Dallas Howard, BOOK OF LOVE), who has a playful relationship with a slow young man named Noah Percy (Adrien Brody, THE PIANIST). That is about as much of the plot as I will reveal.

The film is a meditation on fear – how it affects people, how it is used and how it holds people in its grip. Shyamalan has been quoted as saying he always wanted to make feature length TWILIGHT ZONE episodes. THE VILLAGE is in the vein of some of the better parable-filled editions of that classic sci-fi series. Some critics have felt cheated by the ending, but I say look at how it goes back to the themes. Even questionable actions by certain characters go back to the fear consumed society in which they have grown up in. In this age of orange and red alerts, is a society's use of the color-coded clothes all that unrealistic?

Bryce Dallas Howard is a revelation in her first major role. I’m sure she makes her father Ron Howard very proud. Roger Deakins' mist-filled cinematography is beautiful as well as haunting. The sets capture the era and the film's message amazingly. Pennsylvania is sure a pretty place. Along with Shyamalan's patient pacing and James Newton Howard's unsettling score, all the pieces fit together nicely in creating an uncertain feeling, and that's a good thing for a thriller. I have a feeling this film will grow in appreciation over time. It’s engaging, emotional and poignant.

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Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks