10 Horror Movie Twists That Pissed Everyone Off

9. The Community Was Built On A Lie - The Village

Urban Legends: Final Cut
Buena Vista Pictures

With the stunning Sixth Sense and Unbreakable under his belt, M. Night Shyamalan delivered the so-so Signs in 2002. So, when Shyamalan released The Village two years later, many were eager to see whether Signs was merely a blip or whether it was instead more indicative of the director's erratic quality levels.

For so much of The Village, Shyamalan had audiences in the palm of his hand as he created a tale of suspense, dread and unknowing. A simple but effective premise, the picture centres on a small 19th century village whose inhabitants live in fear at the ominous creatures which lurk on the edge of their homeland.

Throughout a solid 75% of the movie, The Village serves as a great tension-laced horror film. And then, well then comes the effort's final act twist.

After Bryce Dallas Howard's blind Ivy kills ones of the village-watching monsters and climbs over a wall, it's revealed that the movie is actually set in the present day rather than the 19th century. Unable to see what surrounds her, Ivy is handed the medication she's seeking by a park ranger and sent on her way back home.

It's explained to viewers that the home of Ivy and her people was set up in the 1970s by a group looking to escape the troubles and crime of the world. Purchasing a huge estate, the 'village' was created in the middle of said estate, with the 'monsters' of the movie residents in costumes designed to stop the local youngsters from leaving the village and discovering the truth.

Uhu.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.