the village: introduction and conclusion

Question 1

Introduction

Answer 1

Throughout history, human beings have sought a safe place for their loved ones, where evil is kept at bay and innocence is protected. M. Night Shyamalan’s psychological thriller, ‘The Village,’ explores how difficult this can be. This film follows the story of an isolated commune that seems to live during the late 1800s: the director has arranged this by the demure of their subdued and naturally dyed clothes and the pre-industrial farming equipment that they use. Clear boundaries are set to prevent villagers going into the surrounding woods where it is said dangerous creatures live and, in this way, they seem to have found a way to shut out all evil and live peacefully, or so it would seem for now. The director has set two colours in opposition to represent the struggle of good versus evil: the ambience of the golden yellow colour brings connotations of nobility and safety; the opposite, dangerous colour of red becomes a terrifying warning to obey the truce and never offend the monsters by going into their territory, the woods. My essay will focus on (insert question)

Question 2

Conclusion

Answer 2

Shyamalan’s ‘The Village’ leaves us with many questions as we wonder how long this social experiment can last. The irony of protecting innocence by creating fear makes me question the Elders’ ethics. Colour symbolism, framing, editing, and sound work well to create tension and drive home the fear that we can’t keep the danger out, it may even already be lurking within our society.