Movie Review: The Village (2004)

So I've seen The Village before and what I did was I tried to watch it again a few days back (in order for me to give a good review of it). However, I couldn't get past the first 45 minutes of it upon seeing it on a repeat viewing. So then I got the idea to mention that in this review and to go ahead and talk about this flick (I've seen it before) and use what I gathered from my first viewing and from the semi part of the second viewing of it. The Village is a 2004 psychological thriller starring Bryce Dallas Howard, Adrien Brody, Sigourney Weaver, Joaquin Pheonix, and William Hurt. The movie focuses on an isolated Pennsylvania society who fear creatures lurking in the surrounding woods. For me, the first time I watched The Village I thought it was good. The twist in the end is good as long as you are not prepared to actually be swept away by something. The movie itself is suspenseful and it's an entertaining and enjoyable flick, but oh that was just the first time watched. The second viewing of this movie was a huge shock to me because off the get go there were a few problems that I noticed automatically. The first is the pacing. Something that always stood out to me in this movie was how slow it is. This is almost painfully slow in the beginning and the movie doesn't even really go anywhere until after the first hour. The second thing that stood out to me was Bryce Dallas Howard's character named Ivy. This is a blind girl and there are some scenes (though brief) where it looked as if she was breaking character. She glances in different directions and makes expressions that show as if she's looking and SEEING something. I think Ivy is a good character. The acting from all the actors and actresses involved is good. However, this is a role were Dallas Howard didn't quite stay in character. The third problem that stood out to me was how messed up this movie is. The film itself as quality goes, isn't all that bad. However, there are so many plot points, ideas, and messages behind this movie that it turns into a muddled mess. There's a romance between Joaquin Pheonix and Bryce Dallas Howard. There's a story about these beasts living in the forest and preying on the people in the village. There's also a bigger message about betrayal and trust. All of these things are good story ideas, and really are. However, there not layered and they just fall on top of each other and crisscross to make this puddle of good and bad elements. It's not all that rewatchable. I'd also say outright that I kind of do like the plot twist. It is your conventional Shyamalan twist. Overall, The Village is a good quality movie, but it does have a very messed up plot, slow pacing, and a story where the plot takes too long to become apparent. Two stars.