The Linkage
Wednesday, July 30, 2014 at 1:06PM IndieWire takes the Verge to task for publishing a pro-torrent essay on Expendables 3
Nicks Flick Picks Nick & Joe Reid are doing Nick's trademark halfway'ish "Fifties" thing (which starts as soon as Nick has hit 50 movies in any given year. Delicious smart writeups on editing, screenplays, supporting actors and more
Comics Alliance the internet is all excited about this old test footage for that Deadpool movie that's not going to happen for some reason. Starring Ryan Reynolds.
Lincoln Center standby only for the John Waters and Isabelle Huppert event tonight. I'm sure the Q&A will be great but I didn't like that movie Abuse of Weakness much (my review)
CNN Money spends a day with a working Broadway actress
Newsweek explains the recent Buzzfeed scandal in the only way anyone should... through gifs of Shattered Glass
The Daily Beast has a great Susan Sarandon interview icymi where she talks David Bowie, drugs, politics and age discrepancies on film
Variety Jessica Lange to be honored at the Santa Barbara Fest this year
MNPP who wore it best: Tom Hardy face masks
The Guardian the changing demographic of the movie audience that Hollywood is still ignoring in their quest for young white male dollars
AJ Bowen declares Melanie Lynskey the best actor of his generation
Slate has an interesting review of two new sitcoms, one starring Judy Greer called Married
Post Script
Remember The Village (2004)? It turns 10 years old today.
I remember so little about it but ten years turns out to be a long time. Back then people were still excited by the phrase "an M Night Shyamalan film," Joaquin Phoenix wasn't yet a Hallowed Serious Thespian (despite already being an Oscar nominee) and everyone thought Bryce Dallas Howard was THE FUTURE. How foolish we all were in 2004! Okay I remember a smidge more: people loved the score; the colors red and yellow meant Something Significant (I enjoy my colorology); Sigourney Weaver and William Hurt were in it playing vaguely sinister intimidating stern "elders" - you know how they do for paychecks.
Do you have less vague memories of this one?
Reader Comments (20)
I loved The Village as a metaphor for anyone leaving a controlling atmosphere (for me Mormonism). I admit the twist was effective for me, and I thought the cast was really terrific. It's been all downhill since then for Shyamalan I'm afraid.
I remember Bryce's singing...very pure voice...surprised she hasn't done more with that.
I had a major panic attack in the first few minutes, had to climb over half an aisle of people duriing the first attack scene, and ended up watching parts of the movie from the hallway while walking it off in the hall outside.
I still think Shymalan has potential to make another great film. If only he would get out of the way of himself.
Fox biting the R rated bullet that would be needed for a Deadpool movie? Never going to happen. I think Marvel is successful enough that they could easily negotiate to buy back the unwanted PIECES of the X-Men franchise. First up: Deadpool (R-rating, and they're not going to bite the bullet on any of the stuff tied to him, like X-Force, either) and Dazzler (Kevin Feige himself has said he's interested and she's not the kind of character that really fits in, visually, with Bryan Singer's aesthetic tone).
The Village was the movie that turned everyone on M Night right? That's what I remember from its buzz and subsequent backlash.
And BDH is always *the future*! She's breaking out every other year with a new role. Next year: Jurassic World.
I appreciate what the Guardian article is saying about the white male geek pandering at SDCC (he left out "straight"), but I saw that Sin City extended trailer, and I heard Rodriguez speak about the movie at the panel. You can't tell me Sin City 2 isn't pandering to the exact same audience, no matter Rodriguez's previously stated values. The heroes in Sin City are all white straight dudes. The only major POC's are women who are pretty much plot points or props. I'd love to see the rise of the Hispanic Lady Hero, though. Give Michelle Rodriguez more kickass action roles!
Anne Marie: Yeah, that's a complete "argument FAIL" moment. What he's arguing for is solid, and the idea of praising a movie directed by Hispanic talent SEEMS iron clad. But Sin City IS completely geared to, at the very least, straight American dudes. (I'm not going to specify by race because I doubt that's a factor when you're dealing with, well, Sin City.)
The Village was SO GREAT.
Too bad somebody convinced him that his movies were shit (they were NOT) and he started doing these cheap things like After Earth and The Last Airbender soon after his most bold radical movie, The Happening.
cal: You're sticking up for a movie where A MAN OF SCIENCE tells people to "outrun the wind"? Really?
I remember The Village pretty vividly, despite also not having seen it since it first came out. I remember thinking that this is a pretty high-wire premise in that it could have rewarded so handsomely had it been executed with more care and attention to detail. I think that a few more passes of the script and maybe having a co-writer could have maybe made The Village great. I don't hate it, though. I think I like it better than Unbreakable as far as Shyamalan films go. The Sixth Sense means I will never not think he's talented, but he definitely has shown that most people (all people?) should not be the final and only person giving the go-ahead on their own work.
I remember loving the score and thinking it was so great that James Newton Howard got an Oscar nomination for it. There are exceptions, but generally even the craft categories tend to shy away from movies that are this badly reviewed, so I was happy to see them single out an element of the film that is pretty spectacular.
I also remember thinking that Charlie Hofheimer, who played the park ranger, was cute as a button and wanting to see him in more stuff.
I remember watching The Village when it came out with a group of friends who all hated it while I, on the other hand, liked it quite a bit. The movie is referenced constantly by one friend of mine though, much to my chagrin; any time I try pushing a current movie, or a new restaurant, or give my opinion on anything really, I'm always met by a "what do you know? I mean, you're the one who liked The Village!" to a chorus of laughter.
On the M. Night front, I think he's a very talented director but poor screenwriter. He needs to go back to making small, intimate films as these big budget affairs seem to have him in over his head. The only above average films in his entire filmography are his first two.
The Village is sorely underrated. People faulted it for having another Shyamalan twist ending, for being a bit heavy handed in the symbolism department, etc. But it is, aside from being straight up terrifying on a couple of occasions, also without a doubt Shyamalan's most visually expressive, sophisticated film to this day, and I thought he made a very strong point about the need to confront the lies upon which we build our communities/societies/nations. It was a cautionary fable that, a year into the Iraq war, three years after 9/11, felt very timely.
I remember working at a movie theater the day The Village opened. I was standing at the ticket podium when the first showing of the day exited, and they were PISSED. I actually still like the movie, and I am sticking by that statement.
I'm one of those heavily disappointed by The Village and its final twist. Now I think the first part works very well as a scary movie, but unfortunately I find impossible to ignore the ending. You can have a twist that changes the whole perspective of the movie (see The Sixth Sense), but in that final twist there was not only the disappointment with the movie (it changes the genre and you had seen the movie according to those genre expectations!! ) but the disappointment with the director (yes, I'm avoiding to spell the name).
The Happening was just one of the most ridiculous movies I've ever seen, head to head with Don Juan mi querido fantasma (Dear ghost Don Juan).
I don't understand the timing of Sarandon's need to give her opinion on Woody Allen. Almost a year later, and an opinion just like any of ours, based on nothing seen first hand. A little boo for her even though I really like her.
"The Village" had a great build up but the preposterous twist did not work. The film has a rich atmosphere- and M Night does have a couple of moments of real suspense. He should go back to the thriller genre and stop wasting his time on big budget dull crap like "After Earth"
I'm another one who loves The Village. Some of the scenes are so tense and scary, which is helped by James Newton Howard's brilliant and atmospheric score. The scene where Bryce is at the door with her hand out waiting for Joaquin, and the monster is approaching, and then Joaquin grabs her hand and pulls her inside gets me every time.
There are really 2 twists, and I don't mind them at all, although I can see why they would annoy some people. Like lots of films with twists, I think it works better on second viewing.
Oh The Village, I didn't hate you like so many. I was with you though, I was 100% sure Bryce was the future. Hell, I even loved her in Lady in the Water, I film that to my mind isn't nearly as bad as most say.
Oh well.
I love Melanie Lynskey so much. Glad to see her getting some attention.
O trabalho do Melanie Lynskey sempre me pareceu muito bom em comédia, espero que sua nova série que sai em janeiro pela HBO é tão bom.
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