The Village   Producer: Scott Rudin, Sam Mercer, M. Night Shyamalan Director: M. Night Shyamalan Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Bryce Dallas Howard, William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver, Adrien Brody Music: James Newton Howard Lyrics: Genre: Drama Recommended Audience: Parental Guidance Approximate Running Time: 108 mins Film Released on: 30 July 2004 Reviewed by: Radhika Pradhan-Chitnis  - Rating: 6.0 / 10   Let us know what you think about this review

Following in the footsteps of Alfred Hitchcock, M. Night Shyamalan made a big splash in Hollywood. After “Sixth Sense” and “Signs” M. Night Shyamalan became Hollywood’s poet laureate of dread. Having tapped into the fear of the unknown - be it alien or supernatural, Shyamalan now ventures into new territory. Or does he?

The tiny 19th century village of Covington, founded by “elders” who have fled the violence of the city to live in peace and isolation is the location of the tale this time around. Their idyllic life is threatened by “those whose names we never speak” - creatures that have lived in peaceful co-existence in the surrounding forest. But the beasts have begun encroaching, leaving ominous warnings for the villagers.

The lead players: Lucius Hunt (Joaquin Phoenix) is the strong, silent type who questions the need to keep people confined to the village. Ivy Walker (Bryce Dallas Howard) is the blind girl who loves him and Noah Percy (Adrian Brody) is the simpleton who wanders at will and has a soft corner for Ivy. The creatures threaten this love triangle and the very existence of the village. One of them must brave the forest and go for help.

There are no special effects here - at least no swooping superheroes. But the exquisitely controlled camera allows us just a glimpse of something, steadily raising the sense of fear and dread. The simple language spoken by the characters, their subtle expressions and nuanced reactions are special effects of a kind rarely seen in today’s cinema. Many crucial scenes feature slow pans or shots of the backs of characters, yet these are the most articulate sequences in the film.

As in his other films, Shyamalan’s characters reveal an underlying faith that has more to do with life than religion. But this time around, the epiphany of the plot, the twist at the end that has become a signature of this director, illuminates another aspect of his complex personality and imagination.

Of the actors, Bryce Dallas Howard leads with the grace and craft of a natural.

Joaquin Phoenix delivers another moving performance. Adrian Brody disappointingly lurches through the film like a scarecrow on ecstasy and Sigourney Weaver seems strangely self-conscious.

This is not a horror flick. Shyamalan has been known to do the unexpected. Keep that in mind and forget everything else. Watch “The Village” as if you have never seen “Signs” or “Sixth Sense.” Enter the darkened hall with no expectations and keep an open mind - Shyamalan’s pristine, perfect, precise world will soon engulf you in a shroud of anxiety. You will not be disappointed.