Ouch! M. Night Shyamalan's career just took a hit.

Rating: Null/10 (2 August 2004)

***SPOILER WARNING*** Do not read unless you have seen The Village, have no interest in seeing it, or do not care if any of the movie's secrets are revealed to you before viewing it.
The Village (5/10) stars Bryce Dallas Howard, William Hurt, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, and Sigourney Weaver. The film's plot, based on the plot given on the IMDb and the previews, is an 1800s colony who are going to be attacked by monsters that live in the woods around them.
I was so psyched! First of all, it was M. Night Shyamalan! How could it get any better? He brought us Signs and The Sixth Sense! Second of all, MONSTERS!!!!! YAYAYAYAY! Ever since seeing The Mothman Prophecies (9/10) I've been seriously intrigued by the Bigfoot, Loch Ness Monster-type stuff. Of course, I didn't expect the monsters to be anything like Bigfoot because of, need I say it again, M. Night Shyamalan!!
Where did it go wrong?
First of all, The Village was suspenseful for the first hour (It's over two hours long) or at least until one of the "twists" or whatever was revealed to Ivy Walker (Howard). These were the times when we thought there was really something to fear. Everything went downhill from there.

I was so disappointed in it. Maybe if they hadn't hyped it up to be about monsters, it wouldn't have been such a let-down. At my school, about twenty or so people have seen it. I'd say about 97% of them did NOT like The Village.
Why does M. Night Shyamalan have to use a twist? I think it's because people expect it of him, and if he didn't he would really be ridiculed. (Even though there was no real twist in Signs.) I think he took the whole twist thing to far.
But let me say this: I was speechless, though disappointed. This movie made me wonder if there were places like that. (I'm referring to the secret revealed when Ivy Walker jumps that wall at the end of the movie.)
Now, I think most people will be expecting less of M. Night Shyamalan.