The Village

Posted by Greg

November 11, 2007

Tennants Required

*** out of *****

First off, my apologies to any readers of this review who notice any vagueness that may be peppered throughout. Writing up any movie by M. Night Shyamalan always poses a problem for any reviewer. Most people know that his movies are structured so that the last 15 minutes usually contain a twist ending that is intended to pull the rug out from underneath the viewer and inspire water cooler conversations that contain sentences like “Can you believe that xx was a xx?!” and “Did you see that coming? I didn’t see it coming!” The problem then becomes how to inform people of the story without giving anything away.

Few other film makers can manipulate viewers like Shyamalan can, and his name attached to any film automatically starts people talking, wondering about what kind of mind-bending con job he’s going to pull this time. Creating such a niche for yourself is a double-edged sword - you’re a master of the niche, sure, but you’re always going to be expected to top your last effort. Does The Village manage that? In some ways it does, it some ways it doesn’t. I wish I could explain more, but I really can’t.

The film is set in 1897 in an idyllic little town called Covington. It’s full of hard working farmers, cheerful young girls in petticoats and people who were probably responsible for phrases like “Golly Gee” and “Darn.” Led by a council of elders who are responsible for the safety and general well-being of everyone in the village, it seems like a wonderfully tranquil place to live and raise a family. But there’s a catch. Despite its beautiful setting and charming simplicity, the people in the town are prisoners, for the woods surrounding Covington are home to a race of inhuman creatures with severe territorial issues. In return for the creatures staying out of the town limits, the villagers must never set foot in the forest.

It’s an uneasy truce, and fertile ground for a slick, terrifying horror/suspense film. But despite how the film is being marketed, the script (also by Shyamalan) tends to focus more on the personal issues among the villagers than the fright factor. Granted, there certainly are a few moments where you’ll jump, but you may find yourself wondering when things are gonna get scary. They eventually do - sort of - but you may be surprised at just how conventional the elements of terror turn out to be. I wish I could explain more, but I really can’t.

As expected with this cast, the film is very strong in the acting department. Shyamalan knows how to coax restrained yet effective performances out of his leads and he pulls it off again here. William Hurt gives a strong performance as lead elder Edward Walker; his character isn’t called on to emote much, but he still exudes enough wisdom and authority so that we, and the villagers, know that he’s the boss. Joaquin Phoenix demonstrates yet again what a quiet yet forceful presence he can be. He plays Lucius, the shy, mysterious son of Alice Hunt (Sigourney Weaver, in an underwritten role), another elder. His tentative relationship with Ivy Walker (Bryce Dallas Howard, daughter of Ron), is very well written and is the emotional heart of the film; the actors portray great sincerity in their roles and the few times they’re together onscreen are beautifully performed.

The rub comes when gruesome discoveries in Covington lead people to conclude that the creatures in the woods have been inside the village boundaries while they slept. As more and more instances mount, people start to wonder what it all means. Is the truce over? Should they be scared? When tragedy strikes that tests the future of her relationship with Lucius, Ivy must make the trip through the woods to the ‘outside villages’ to get help.

By this point, you will have learned a secret about the creatures in the woods that may or may not frustrate you. Some that I saw the film with bought the explanation, some did not. Myself, I found it kind of an intriguing letdown that requires a bit of faith on the part of the viewer if you’re to follow the film to its conclusion. And as expected, the twists don’t stop with the revelation about the creatures; it’s only when Ivy reaches the outside villages that the real twist comes, and this is where the movie will either keep you close to its tricky heart or lose you completely. It is startling to be sure, but in an oddly detached way. Come to think of it, it’s so far-fetched that if the film makers had deleted it completely the movie wouldn’t have lost a whole lot (but then there would be no water cooler conversations). I wish I could explain more, but I really can’t.

Believe it or not, Shyamalan shoots his scenes in a similar fashion to Quentin Tarantino, somehow managing to keep excruciatingly long takes interesting. But where Tarantiono uses dialogue, Shyamalan uses visuals, and The Village is no exception. Beautifully photographed by Roger Deakins, the film has some very eerie images and beautiful vistas. A lot of time has been spent on the sound design too, giving everything from blowing leaves to creaking twigs a sense of ominous threat.

I do think Shyamalan has grown as a writer - if you dig deeper, you may find that the script is actually quite a clever meditation on - some say - the current political condition in certain countries (coughUSAcough), where the thoughts and behaviors of a population can be controlled to a certain extent through the clever manipulation of fear of the unknown, or even worse, the fully understood.

A very literate, layered movie, deliberately paced, well acted and beautifully realized, but one can’t help feel that the entire 2 hours are nothing but a setup for the trick ending. Whether or not your ego can handle being deliberately manipulated by this movie all the way to an ending that you will either love or hate is something that only you can decide. I wish I could explain more, but I really can’t.

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