The village

Year of release : 2004

Run time : 1h48m

Genre : Mystery / Horror

Cast : Sigourney Weaver, Joaquin Phoenix, William Hurt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Adrien Brody, Judy Greer, Michael Pitt

Director : M. Night Shyamalan

The movie was written, produced and directed by M. Night Shyamalan.

It seems to be the XIXth century, and the village gathers at the funeral of a child. The elders question their decision to settle in that area near the forest which is filled with creatures they don’t speak of. They have rules not to leave the village, they have watch posts and towers with oil lamps and torches, and the color red is banned as it attracts “those they do not speak of”.

Teenagers dare each other to stand on a stub, back against the forest, for as long as they can, to prove they are courageous, and not afraid of the creatures of the forest.

Children discover a skinned animal in the village, and the village fears of the creatures. The elders assure them they lived in peace with the creatures so far, and they didn’t cross the boundary into the forest to upset them, so they should be good.

At the elders’ gathering Lucius Hunt reads his letter asking them to allow him to go outside their village to the other villages to get medicine so no one else will have to die like the youngster. His request is denied.

The only one who thinks of the towns seems to be Lucius, as all the others consider them wicked places where wicked people live, as a lot of the elders seem to have stories about someone they loved being k1lled there.

 

The next day the villagers find another skinned animal.

Alice Hunt tells the worried villagers that it appears they have a predator like a coyote amongst them, and they don’t need to be worried.

Lucius helps the father of the boy who died, as they used to be friends.

Ivy, who is blind, is friends with a mentally challenged boy,Noah, who seems to be found of her.

Seeing the mentally challenged boy entered to forest, crossing the boundary, to pick berries in the red colors which attracts the creatures, and he was unharmed, Lucius thinks the creatures didn’t attack him due to his innocence, and he tries to persuade the elders again, to let him go buy medicine. He is denied again, and later that evening, his mother tells him how his father was k1lled one evening going out to buy food.

Kitty Walker is excited to tell her father, one of the elders, that she wants to marry a boy she is in love with. Although she didn’t talk to the boy. The boy is Lucius, and when she does he refuses her.

Kitty’s sister, Ivy, knows why Lucius refused her sister. Because he is in love with her.

Kitty gets over this fast, and marries another boy.

On her wedding night, the town seems to have been attacked by the creatures as a lot of the small animals are found skinned all around the village. One of the creatures seems to be around the gathering and everybody runs home, to hide in the basement, as indeed, these creatures walk about the village.

Ivy tells Lucius that since her elder sister is married, she can accept marriage proposals too, now.

Hearing that Ivy is marrying Lucius, Noah stabs Lucius out of jealousy.

Ivy is asking the elders to let her go get him medicine so he won’t die, and her father let’s her in on a secret the elders have been keeping.

I personally enjoyed the movie (it’s one of my favorite movies from 20 years ago). I liked its atmosphere, the way it was filmed, the way the visual merged with the audio, the sound effects with the sound of the wind, the trees moving in the wind as if they were speaking to each other…

The villagers wear colors which don’t stand out and blend in the scenery they are in (as if so they won’t be found).

I liked the twist at the end, although it doesn’t quite make sense with the events at the wedding when the creatures appear, SPOILER as Noah is hiding with them, so it’s not him this time END OF SPOILERS.

The acting was great, especially from Bryce Dallas Howard, who played a blind girl, Adrien Brody who played a mentally challenged man, and Joaquin Phoenix, who plays a quiet man, who seems to tremble when speaking in front of the elders.

The soundtrack was good.

The movie received mixed reviews (under 50 from the critics but above 50 from the audiences), and grossed almost 257 million dollars at the box office, against a budget of around 71 million dollars.

Cinema Score audiences graded it a C!

The movie was nominated for quite a few awards, including an Oscar.

Rating : Worth a watch !