Chilling and Smart. Almost as good as the Sixth Sense

Rating: 7/10 (7 June 2005)

The Village is yet another horror, suspenseful film by up-and-coming director M. Night Shyamalan. The movie will keep you thinking and is brilliantly acted and written for a horror film.
Lucius Hunt (Joaquin Phoenix)is a villager in a small, secluded, 19th-century town and is one of the better folk. The village is located in a valley surrounded by forest, and the villager's aren't allowed to stray from it. The forest is filled with creatures, deadly and vicious and if villagers stray into the forest they'll be killed.
After the death of a villagers son, Lucius sees it ridiculous that they don't try and reach the outside towns for medicine. He is denied but an act of defiance would lead himself and his village into chaos and to the truth. Shyamalan is continuing to prove that he is a top director and an incredible storyteller. Phoenix is a bit wasted but Bryce Dallas Howard makes up for it as his blind and caring girlfriend, Ivy. Adrien Brody, however, is over-the-top brilliant in his role as the mentally-disturbed Noah.
The end will catch you completely off-guard (what a surprise for Shymalan) and is thoughtfully placed. The story is just as good as Signs (2002) and is nearly as good as the Sixth Sense. It's a very good film, nothing special but still a pretty good thriller and horror film.
The Village. Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Bryce Dallas Howard, Adrien Brody, and William Hurt.
3 1/2 out of 5 Stars.