10 Horror Movies Critics Were WAY Too Harsh On
9. The Village
The Village was the movie that toppled M Night Shyamalan's undisputed reign as the new Spielberg of horror. In a brutal review published by Roger Ebert, the USA's most respected film critic in modern times, The Village received one star - ouch.
Ebert wrote: "The Village" is a colossal miscalculation, a movie based on a premise that cannot support it, a premise so transparent it would be laughable were the movie not so deadly solemn. It's a flimsy excuse for a plot, with characters who move below the one-dimensional and enter Flatland."
At the heart of this film, however, is a meaningful romance with Phoenix and Dallas-Howard, displaying a touching chemistry. The talent behind this film is considerable - Adrian Brody, Sigourney Weaver and John Hurt lend weight to a production that deserved be treated with greater understanding. Shyamalan subtly drip feeds the set-up from the start and presents us with a considered meditation on grief, loss and trust.
As night sets in on the titular village, a lone sentry guards the sleeping population as 'Those We Don't Speak Of' silently infiltrate the serene hamlet, in one of the best moments of the movie. Tension and suspense classes from Hitchcock were required reading for Shyamalan, who nails this sequence in this well crafted and wholly underrated gem.