A Far Better Film Than Advertised

Rating: Null/10 (27 August 2004)

'The Village' suffers from 2 major problems: the advertising campaign, which insists on trailing it as a mainstream shock-horror film, and the refusal of many movie-goers to shift mental gears and accept the film on its own terms.
This film is not about whether or not the audience can "see the twist in the plot", nor is it a conventional horror tale; it is a film about layers of complexity, an acutely observed study of human pain and fragility, and an unsettling examination of an ethical dilemma. The Elders of the village have created a solution to the problem of their pain by rejecting the outside world and its values. However, their simpler life is built on lies and deceit which, no matter how well intentioned, cannot be sustained without serious negative consequences for their community. In order to protect themselves and those they love, deception is layered upon deception, and the entire edifice of lies is in continual danger of crashing down around their ears. The fact that the village is generally relatively tranquil does not detract from the severe ethical compromises made on a regular basis; the Elders have locked themselves into a pattern of irresponsible and dysfunctional behaviour from which they cannot escape even when given the choice. When it becomes clear that there are opportunities to allow the younger members of the community to make their own choices based on the truth, they choose instead to give only partial information instead, obscuring the Big Lie which is fundamental to their way of life.
Joachin Phoenix and Bryce Dallas Howard shine as the most truthful and courageous members of the village, whose insistence on doing what is right and decent discomfits the Elders. Their nobility is never showy, always simple and honest. Hurt and Weaver turn in beautifully low-key performances as their parents, each making bad choices for good reasons. Brody's performance invites the audience to be simultaneously appalled and compassionate; his strange behaviour is both destructive and malignant, and yet this malignancy is laced with innocence.
The closing scenes provide both hope for the future of the community and the probability that the Elders will continue on their path of lies, leaving the audience unsettled and uncomfortable with the knowledge that the inhabitants of the village may never come to know the truth; that if they do, they will be irreperably damaged, and if they don't, they face a bleak future in a slowly declining isolated community.