’’All we have to do now
is take these lies
and make them true ... somehow’’
Freedom 90 - George Michael
Since the abosolutely astonishing film ’The Sixth Sense’
I have not missed any of Shyamalan’s movies
The main problem with the movies that followed ’The Sixth Sense’
is that although the ends did have twist’s, they were not
big enough to satiate the viewer.
Like eating the best meal and still feeling hungry.
’The Village’ also has its twist (hey what’s a Shyamalan
movie without one) but here Shyamalan parachutes into the
drop zone of implausibility.
The film opens with a funeral in a village
in an unspecified time and place. A sneak shot of the
a gravestone for the dead boy suggests the date as 1890.
The village is like a village of Amish. People seem to live a
simple life. They have a council of ’elders’ and sit together
for big meals. However none of them seem to have any occupation.
The village is surrounded by a forbidden forest where live creatures
who wear red and we see brief glimpses of them like the
aliens in ’Signs’. They are known as Those We Do Not Speak Of
which gave me a feeling that I walked into Harry Potter movie.
The village hunk Lucius Hunt (Joaquin Phoenix) petitions the
elders that he be allowed to leave the village and travel to
the towns on the other side of the forest to get medicines which
could help prevent further deaths.
Since one of the elders is also his mother (Sigourney Weaver)
he is turned down. Ivy (Bryce Dallas Howard), the blind daughter of
another elder Edward Walker(William Hurt) is in love with him.
The most beautiful scene in the film is the one where Lucius
takes Ivy’s hand and leads her to safety when one of the monsters
enters the village.
Then something happens and Ivy asks that she be allowed to go
to the towns and get medicine. Edward Walker reluctantly decides to send
her but not before he has revealed to her the secret of the monster.
To write more would be to spoil the movie for those who have not watched it.
The best part of this movie is undoubtedly the performances, especially that of
Howard. She is so spunky as the blind Ivy. The whole movie rests of those
beautiful eyes of hers. Phoenix and Adrien Brody as the village idiot as also good.
The costumes, set design and camera work is good.
The end is a let down as I have said above Shyamalan parachutes into the
drop zone of implausibility and the viewer is left without a parachute.
But then when you think about it, u understand that this film is Shyamalan’s
take on current events happening in the world. Those who understand this
will forgive him for the holes in the script.
For those who don’t get it, ah well that’s always the next time.
So although I am two minds I will still recommend this film.
It will definitely be better than watching braindead films like
’Harold and Kumar go to White Castle’