The Village

I get home today and my wife immediately tells me we have to go out and see a flick tonight. I love it when she speaks my language, so I jumped at it and said "Let's go!" We're both fans of Shayamalan's films, so we went to see The Village. Honestly, not nearly as good as his past films, the dialogue is a bit much, but the story is purely original and the method is different from anything I've seen in a while. The acting by Bryce Dallas Howard (Ron Howard's daughter) is a great career launcher, and Joaquin Phoenix is great playing an afflicted and reflective blacksmith. I can never talk too much about it, because there's too much I can't reveal. The cinematography is beautiful, thanks to Mr. Roger Deakins, a modern genius of a DP. You have to pay close attention to every detail, there are clues everywhere just as in Shayamalan's past films. Right when I walked out I said to my wife "Some people will find it stupid, and other people will understand what just happened and love it". Don't pay attention to Ebert's review, they're just rantings of an old angry man who is still frustrated because he could never master the craft himself.