welcome back M. Night Shyamalan

Rating: 9/10 (26 February 2005)

I was disappointed of M. Night Shyamalan falling under Mel Gibson's religious fervor and mixing science fiction with Catholicism in 'Signs'. Luckily, my concerns were eased by 'The Village'. M. Night Shyamalan is back, and 'The Village' sits well among his good movies.
A previous commenter observed that two categories of viewers seek M. Night Shyamalan's movies. Those who like horror stories, and those who look for the hidden traps specific to his writing and directing. In my opinion both categories find good stuff here. The horror story thread is very convincing, and the first half of the movie recreates a 1800s American settlers environment mixed with a Gothic horror story thread that was very credible for me. Yes, I was willing to be fooled, but you need to be a willing fool if you want to enjoy horror movies. The explanation of the trap in the second part of the film has logic and morals. One may argue about the approach taken by the characters in their attempt to fly the evils of civilization, but not with the quality of the cinema used to give the story.
Cinematography fits well the twists of the action, with a color code that is well explained and will soon become part of the stony. Acting is superb. Jaochin Phoenix and Adrien Brody give two of their best performances ever, William Hurt is William Hurt, and the fresh face of Bryce Dallas Howard fills in well the screen in her first lead role.
Highly recommended. 9 out of 10 on my personal scale.