A masterpiece and Shyamalan's best so far

Rating: 8/10 (14 September 2004)

This movie is for you if you, like me, loved Signs. These two movies are very much alike, especially if you compare them to The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable. Of Shyamalan's movies I saw Signs first and I was impressed with how he makes you think he's telling you a story about Aliens and corn circles and it's really about something else. (Trying not to give anything away here) The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable seemed kind of simple after that. Yeah, they were nice to watch, they had their twist endings but they just didn't have that emotional side I like so much about Signs.
But now let's get to The Village. From the trailers I didn't really expect to see a movie like Signs, I was more expecting a Sleepy Hollow kind of experience. Boy was I wrong. Sure, it's creepy and it works much better at keeping suspense up than some people want to make you believe. But there's much more to this movie.
First of all I've got to say that when watching The Village it was the first time since I don't know when that I felt I was watching a piece of art, not just a flick that wants to entertain. The images Shyamalan shows us are just beautiful. The colors, the composition are right away amazing. At some points in the film I actually felt like I was watching a painting come alive. What also adds to the art is the music. If you are at all interested in classical music or movie scores you will not be able to get this solo violin out of your head. When I first heard it I knew I had to get my hands on that score.
OK, so the movie is presented in a nice way. But is it any good? Yes it is. It is IF (and I can't stress this if enough) you liked Signs, you don't want to see exactly what the trailer seems to promise and you don't mind slow films. 'Cause slow it is. Not in a bad way though. Shyamalan just takes his time to build up his characters and to create an authentic almost tangible atmosphere. In that he's supported by a great cast, especially Phoenix and Howard. Phoenix is good as usual but Howard just blew my mind. They start you off into a story that begins as a horror movie but then evolves into something far deeper and far more emotional. And if you let that happen to you, if you don't just sit there and wait to be scared you will really love this movie.
I give it a 10 out of 10 because Shyamalan totally achieves what he tried to do in this film. You just shouldn't think it's about scares and twists.