emlogomain.jpg

Main
Facebook
Tumblr
News/ Updates
DVD Reviews
DVD Reviews 2017 to 2024
Blu-ray Reviews
2024 BLu-ray and 4K UHD Reviews
2023 Blu-ray and 4K UHD Reviews
2022 Blu-ray and 4K UHD reviews
Blu-ray Reviews 2021
Movie Reviews
Movie Reviews 2019 to 2024
TV
Interviews
Movie Review: DUNE PART TWO
Blu-ray Review: THE MOON
Blu-ray Review: DIVINITY
Blu-ray Review: APOCALYPSE TETRALOGY
Bluray Review: THE MARSH KING'S DAUGHTER
DVD Review: INTO THE ABYSS
Blu-ray Review: THE EXPENABLES 4
4K Blu-ray Review: THE CREATOR
4K Blu-ray Revew: TO LIVE AND DIE IN L.A.
Blu-ray Review: FOG CITY
4K BR Review: OPPENHEIMER
Blu-ray Review: BLUE BEETLE
Movie Review: THE MARVELS
Blu-ray Review: TALK TO ME
4K Blu-ray Review: SCREAM 3 steelbook
Blu-ray Review: THE CRIMSON RIVERS 2
4K bluray review: THE BLOB 4K steelbook
Blu-ray Review: ON THE SILVER GLOBE
Blu-ray Review- BABYLON 5: THE ROAD HOME
Blu-ray Review: GOD IS A BULLET
Blu-ray Review: SKY PIRATES
Blu-ray Review: SISU
Blu-ray Review- HOLLYWOOD DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES
Movie Review: COLONIALS
4K Blu-ray Review: NIGHTBREED
Movie Review- MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE- DEAD RECKONING PART ONE
Blu-ray Review: STONE COLD
Blu-ray Review: ONE RANGER
Blu-rayReview: THE FLASH
blu-ray Review: MAD HEIDI
4K Blu-ray Review: THE DOUBLE LIFE OF VERONIQUE
4K Blu-ray Review: DRAGONSLAYER steelbook
4K Blu-ray Review: STREETS OF FIRE
Blu-ray Review: A MAN CALLED OTTO
Blu-ray Review: THE CRIMSON RIVERS
4K Blu-ray Review: THE ITALIAN JOB (1969)
4K Blu-ray Review: EVENT HORIZON
4K Blu-ray Review: CLOVERFIELD steelbook
4K Blu-ray Review: ACCION MUTANE
4K Blu-ray Review: WINGS OF DESIRE steelbook
Blu-ray Review- DOCTOR WHO: THE ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN
Blu-ray Review: SAMPO
Movie Review- AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER
Bluray Review: HALLOWEEN ENDS
4K Blu-ray review: HIGHLANGER Director's Cut steelbook
4K BR Review- STTMP The Complete Adventure
Blu-ray Review: MOONAGE DAYDREAM
Blu-ray Review: NO ESCAPE
Blu-ray Review: GINGER SNAPS TRILOGY
Blu-ray Review: I'M DANGEROUS TONIGHT
Blu-ray Review: THE INVITATION
Movie Review: HALLOWEEN ENDS
Movie Review: HELLRAISER (2022)
Blu-ray Review: AFTER BLUE
DVD Review: DEUS
Blu-ray Review: WOLF HOUND
Movie Review: PREY (2022)
Blu-ray Review: CRIMES OF THE FUTURE
Movie Review- THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER
Blu-ray Review: THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT
Blu-ray Review: FIRESTARTER (2022)
Movie Review- TOP GUN: MAVERICK
Movie Review- JURASSIC WORLD: DOMINION
4K UHD review: LIFEFORCE
Blu-ray Review- WYRMWOOD: APOCALYPSE
Blu-ray Review: BELLE
DVD Review: THE KING'S DAUGHTER
Blu-ray review: PROJECT GEMINI
Movie Review: EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE
Blu-ray Review: SETTLERS
Movie Review: THE NORTHMAN
Blu-ray Review: HOUSE OF GUCCI
Blu-ray Review- GHOSTBUSTERS AFERLIFE
Blu-ray Review: LAST NIGHT IN SOHO
Blu-ray 4K Review- RESIDENT EVIL: WELCOME TO RACCOON CITY
Movie Review- SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME
Blu-ray Review: RAGING FIRE
Movie Review: THE MARIX RESURRECTIONS
4K Blu-ray Review: NO TIME TO DIE
DVD Review: THE FLOOD
Blu-ray Review: DOCTOR WHO Season 24
Blu-ray Review: CANDYMAN (2021)
Blu-ray Review- DOCTOR WHO: EVIL OF THE DALEKS (import)
Movie Review: DUNE Part One
Blu-ray review: ELVIRA'S HAUNTED HILLS
Blu-ray Review: THE COLONY (2021)
Movie Review: ETERNALS
Movie Review: NO TIME TO DIE
Movie Review: HALLOWEEN KILLS
Blu-ray Review: THE GREEN KNIGHT
Blu-ray Review: FAST VENGEANCE
4K Blu-ray Review: BLACK WIDOW
Blu-ray Review: F9 THE FAST SAGA
Blu-ray Review: DOCTOR WHO Season 8 (1971)
4K Blu-ray Review: PROSPECT
Blu-ray Review: SPARE PARTS
blu-ray Review: SIBERIA (2021)
Blu-ray Review: DOORS (2021)
Blu-ray Review: THE UNHEALER
Blu-ray Review: VOYAGERS
Blu-ray Review: TIMELINE (import)
Blu-ray review: KING KONG (1976)
4K UHD Blu-ray review: PERDITA DURANGO
Blu-ray Review: PYSCHO GOREMAN
DVD Review: SKY SHARKS
DVD Review: WILLY'S WONDERLAND
Blu-ray Review: EVENT HORIZON Collector's Edition
Blu-ray Review: SPUTNIK
Blu-ray Review: PUMP UP THE VOLUME
Blu-ray Review: MONSTER HUNTER
Blu-ray Review: SOUTHLAND TALES
Blu-ray Review: SHADOW IN THE CLOUD
Blu-ray Review: SPACEWALKER
Blu-ray review: THE IPCRESS FILE
DVD Review: STRANDED ON MARS
Blu-ray Review: TENET
DVD Review: SKYLINES
Blu-ray Review: POSSESSOR UNCUT
Blu-ray review: FLASH GORDON
Movie Review: TENET
PHOTOGRAPHY

THE VILLAGE

DVD Review by David Blackwell

DETAILS: 108 minutes, deleted scenes, production photo gallery, featurette, and M. Night's Home Movie.

STUDIO: TOUCHSTONE

RELEASE DATE: 1-11-2004

ANALYSIS: M. Night Shyamalan is the type of director who does movies that appeal to some while leaving others disappointed. THE SIXTH SENSE was good the first time around, but further viewings left me bored as soon as I knew the tricks and twists. UNBREAKABLE was actually a good twist on super hero movies while SIGNS left me disappointed with the way the movie played out. Now I come to THE VILLAGE which I watched with very low expectations. As with previous M. Night movies, some people were left disappointed. Many people were letdown because they wanted it to be like his other movies. I think the advertising campaign may have been partly to blame. I actually liked THE VILLAGE. Except for a bad performance by the actress who play's Ivy's sister and the uneven acting of Bryce Dallas Howard as Ivy, the acting is top notch from experienced actors like William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver, and Adrien Brody..

THE VILLAGE takes place in a 19th century town where life is simple. The town folk don't venture out in the woods because they fear the creatures that lurk there. Also red is a forbidden color that is said to attract the creatures and the creatures are known as Those That We Don't Speak Of. A dread and unease pushes forth a fear into the people to not travel into the woods to other towns. One of the town folk, Lucius (Joaquin Phoenix) is a quiet man who wants to go to other towns for medicine because he knows it has to be done. The town elders strike down his requests. He falls for a blind woman, Ivy, who lost her sight as a child. Events happen as skinned animals are found and the creature ventures into the town. THE VILLAGE is an interesting tale about fear, innocence, and love. The score by James Newton Howard and the sound tricks help create an isolated world shot beautifully by Roger Deakins (the Director of Photography).

VIDEO/AUDIO: THE VILLAGE is presented in 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen. The colors and blacks are good. Image detail comes across well.

You can hear THE VILLAGE in English 5.1 or French 5.1 Dolby Digital with the option of French or Spanish subtitles (or English captions). Dialogue is clear and none of the other sound elements (including the music) obscure the words people are saying. Music and special sound effect tricks come across strongly.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

DECONSTRUCTING THE VILLAGE is a series of featurettes that take a look behind the scenes of THE VILLAGE. Each featurette can be played alone or all together. The featurettes have interviews with cast and crew:

Shooting The Village (15:27) goes into how THE VILLAGE came about, show the sets being constructed, a freak blizzard that almost caused the movie to relocate, and the small window they had to shoot some scenes after the rain melted away the snow.

Casting (2:13) tells the story of how the casting of Bryce Dallas Howard determined the casting of the other roles.

Boot Camp (3:32) has the actors talking about the boot camp they went through for to learn how to live the 19th century life.

Editing & Sound (3:28) goes over the editing of the movie and how sound played an important part in THE VILLAGE.

Scoring The Village (2:53) is about the score by James Newton Howard, the 24 year old female violinist used during the music recording sessions, and the director throwing the music out 2/3 the way in to have the music focus on certain emotions.

Those We Don't Speak Of (2:37) shows production art of the creature in the movie and video of an early creature costume that didn't work out as the director hoped.

Included among the extras are 11 minutes of deleted scenes that are introduced by director M. Night Shyamalan and then he tells why each scene was cut from the movie. Out of the five scenes, three are interesting to watch while the Pre-Wedding scenes just don't add anything to the movie at all.

BRYCE'S DIARY (4:50) has entries of Bryce Dallas Howard being spoken by her on her experience on the movie. Her entries come off like she was writing this diary out on the plains in the 19th century.

Rounding out the extras are a segment of a bad home movie Night did as a kid which amounts to a terrible Indiana Jones homage and a PRODUCTION PHOTO GALLERY that has 38 photos taken during the production of the movie showing the production process and candid photos.

FINAL ANALYSIS: THE VILLAGE is a good DVD that is at least worth a rental. Just remember to skip THE BURIED SECRET OF M. NIGHT SHYALAMAN (which is a horrible documentary done in an amateur fashion) that comes out on the same day.

this review is (c)1-13-2005 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission. Send all comments to lord_pragmagtic@hotmail.com and look for additional content (and site updates) at http://www.livejournal.com/users/enterlinemedia