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An Honest Review

The Village – An Honest Review

An honest, biased review of M. Night Shymalan’s 2004 horror flick “The Village” starring Bryce Dallas Howard and Joaquin Phoenix.

( M. Night Shymalan ) Photo by Gage Skidmore

The 2004 horror film was written and directed by M. Night Shymalan. It’s the story of a woodland village, uneffected by the modern world and it’s technologies, which is also on the verge of attacks by robed monsters nobody ever actually sees.

PLOT:

The village consists of a small, guarded community living in fear of any possible attacks from “those who shall not be named” like the forest is surrounded by dozens of Voldemorts. The people eat their meals outside, on long cafeteria like benches that appear to be seperated by family or otherwise.

( Bryce Dallas Howard ) Photo by Tony Shek

The most famous villagers here are: Our main protagonist; Ivy ( Bryce Dallas Howard ) who has strong affections for Lucius ( Joaquin Phoenix ), there’s the troublemaking Noah ( Adrien Brody ), elder Alice Hunt ( Sigourney Weaver ), Priest August ( Brendan Gleeson ) and a young Jesse Eisenberg who mostly stands in the background. I know he was an unknown then, but it really is distracting waiting for such a talented actor to actually do something, just for him to barely do anything after his little stunt at the beginning.

( Jesse Eisenberg ) Photo by Steve Rogers

The plot’s basically this – Some villagers are sick, Phoenix and Brody want to help by going to the next town to get medicine ( despite most lilely having no money they would accept ), the town council rejects thinking the monsters will attack, eventually the monsters do attack and Bryce Dallas Howard makes a break to leave the village.

( Joaquin Phoenix ) Photo by Tony Shek

After this and also before the movie developes into a shitty, gloomy-goth horror who attempts it’s worst at being an almost mildly entertaining thing with not a wave, a pinch or otherwise – no A SCENT of mystery. In a La Croix kind of way. Also the ending sucked.

( Sigourney Weaver ) Photo by Gage Skidmore

CONCLUSSION:

Overall, The Village was a dissapointing entry in Shymalan’s quality diversed career. Great cast, wasted terribly. The film took itself too seriously and would have done greatly with a little more substance as well as actual characters who don’t feel forced. Basically, it was a Robert Eggers film, just worse. So much worse.

If I get the opportunity to now watch Signs of Glass, you folks can expect a sequel to my Shymalan blog one day.

-The Screenwriter

All photos follow this license – https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

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