Thought-provoking, multi-layered, hidden commentary?

Rating: 9/10 (15 February 2005)

I found this movie to have many layers of meaning - more, even, than referenced by the writer/director himself in the interviews/commentaries. It was a thriller of the even, slow-paced, old-fashioned kind. It was a romance. But, beyond that, I found not-so-hidden messages about society and religion.
Is the "evil" that they tried to escape from inherent in all of us - i.e., physical and mental illness - and impossible to escape from? Is the ritual and symbolism imposed by the elders a metaphor for established religion? The creatures metaphors for the devil? Does the youngster taunting the creature strike a decidedly Calvary-esque pose? Seems like there is more behind the movie than even the write-director speaks about.