Film review: The Village.

After a long wait I finally got to see this film today, and I wasn't disappointed. With the likes of Unbreakable and The Sixth Sense, and, to some degree, Signs, already under his belt, writer-director M. Night Shyamalan is rapidly earning the reputation as the biggest master of twists in Hollywood, and this film does not let down.

This is definitely not a horrormovie - I was surprised at how many people stumbled out of the movie-theatre mumbling that it wasn't all that scary. It never pretends to be a horrormovie; it crosses many genre lines. It very closely approaches Shyamalan's first outing The Sixth Sense in its subtleness and it complexity, and it is within this complexity that the horror hides. He knows how to retain the suspense, all the while telling a touching tale of a community secluded because of fear, but also of comradery and even love.

The cast was wonderful, especially the leads. Phoenix and Howard do an excellent job and the supporting cast does what it's paid for. The cinematograpy was just mesmerising - almost every single shot is slightly off-kilter creating this unnerving effect. I could go into the use of colour, but then I'd spoil things.

In effect, The Sixth Sense is the worst thing that ever happened to M. Night Shyamalan. Because of the massive succes of The Sixth Sense there are people for whom the end(twist) of his films either make of break their opinion of said film, and I think that's a loss. His films don't depend on these twists - they are not what should be focused on when watching a Shyamalan film. In the end, his movies are all character studies about humanity. Don't go in expecting the world, go in expecting a well crafted and beautifully visualised story.

You will not be disappointed.

A 70 out of 100.

Cheers