Nice concept. Concept Illustration?? hmmm...

Rating: Null/10 (17 August 2004)

OK. Firstly, I enjoy Shyamalan's movies. They're not your average fare and mainly his movies are not always what they seem at first glance.
From that point of view, The Village is as much a movie about monsters as Signs is about aliens. What I think Shyamalan does is write a story about a concept or a theme and choose to illustrate it in a way that grabs our attention. This method of illustration is the alien invasion in Signs or the monsters in The Village. That our assumptions and preconceived notions ("...but where is the twist???") detract from our opinions about his movies and our movie-going experiences is a little unfortunate.
With those general comments out of the way, let me get to the movie itself. I've already said that the theme behind the movie was pretty good, possibly his boldest yet. I just felt that the story that he chose to illustrate his theme left a bit to be desired. The good thing about his previous movies was that all the plot points were in some way or the other tied in to the underlying story. Be it Joaquin Phoenix playing baseball in Signs or the children drinking water or having asthma. No wasted scenes and no coincidences.
Thats a problem in The Village. Some scenes appear to have been added on to bulk up the story and have nothing to do with the theme at all. The thin sub-plot between William Hurt and Sigourney Weaver is an example. It feels like the story is a little thin and stretched.
The fact that the ending or so called twist was predictable is irrelevant. What Shyamalan attempts to do in this movie is make us wonder about the answer to the question "Who are the real monsters?".
Say what you will about the plot, the story and the dialogues. Shyamalan's skill as a director is increasing with every film and this one is wonderfully shot. The mood, lighting and music suggest a feeling of fear when the storyline sometimes slows down.
All in all a solid movie. Possibly his strongest theme but his weakest story so far. Well directed but plot, story could have been better written.
Overall:.. hmm.. 6.5/10..
p.s. can't wait for "life of pi", Shyamalan's next. The book is brilliant.