Parent reviews for The Village

Sending in my review because a long repressed memory hit me after watching a clip from this movie :-) My father snuck me into the theater when I was seven to watch this movie. I didn’t understand the movie, but the creepy animal thing gave me nightmares. It was months before I could sleep alone again. I’m sure no one is planning on letting their 7 year old see this movie but, just in case, I’m here to say DON’T DO IT.

I'm only writing this review to point out that Common Sense Media missed something in their language section. This movie contains one taking of the Lord's Name in vain. O.M.G. to be specific.

My kids were fine with this movie at a young age. Suspenseful, but not too gory other than animals. Good conversation starter.

The story is relevant to today, on how elders try to protect the youth thinking what’s best for them when I’m fact we are not. This movie is about the our leaders use of scare tactics to manipulate society.

Half vintage drama, half love story and half thriller in a forest village hidden away from our modern World that could be an old Balkan or German village. This movie is meant for adults like us that grew up with UK vintage dramas in the 1990s.

This movie is set on an Amish community with some dark secrets which lie within the hearts of the village's elders and the souls of their young. It depicts a village in which no one is allowed to leave in fear of some unnamed monsters that lurk in the surrounding forest. Supposedly these monsters show compassion for the impaired and innocent, and the fear lies within discovering if you are to be killed by them or not. The main theme involves young Ivy Walker on her quest to venture out of her village and toward a city, in order to retain medicine for future lover Lucius Hunt. She is met with many obstacles, including the detrimental effect her decision has on the village. This film provokes thoughts and can be viewed from many different perspectives. The experience your child will receive from this movie lies solely on the way they perceive it. I recommend waiting until they are old enough to fully understand the context and themes which are prevalent in this film. It's appropriate, but still, wait.

Not too good is what I think of this movie. There is a scene of violence and some scary situations plus a few uses of the S word. Romance includes some kissing plus a little bit of romantic drama. My Rating PG-13 for A scene of violence and some language.

While the critics panned this movie when it came out in 2004, I think it is an excellent story with suspenseful video shots and beautiful music. There were characters with strong morals and good intentions. The leaders are equally women and men which I appreciated, although there is little ethnic diversity here. My teen daughter and her friends loved it, and I loved seeing them exposed to a scary story devoid of sex, drugs and alcohol, and foul language. We had a good discussion about what makes good story telling.

Parents need to know that The Village is a eerie, thoughtful addition to the M. Night Shyamalan collection. With terrifying imagery and bloody sequences, this one's definitely for teens and up. The movie centers on a small village in the 1800's that is bordered by a dark forest. In the forest lurk disturbing-looking monsters that leave dead, skinned carcasses of assorted animals. The camera lingers on the bodies and really makes you look at them. This may frighten children, especially if they see their favorite animals dead. When finally seen, the animals look somewhat like pigs, but certainly do not act like them. The main character is stalked and chased by one of them in very intense scenes. One character is stabbed very unexpectedly, and the knife is seen slipping out, covered with blood. The culprit is later seen with blood all over his hands. One character suffers from many psychological conditions, and his actions/attitude may frighten and concern children. Apart from the one previously mentioned, there are many deaths. Most are not seen on camera, but described. These scenes may be the most intense (the descriptions of deaths). Rape, murder, being thrown in a dumpster, being shot in the eye, etc. All these are talked of in great detail. Some romance, nothing comes of it. No bad language whatsoever. As all Shyamalan films, there is an incredible, unseen twist (several in this case). This is likely to shock/amaze teens, but none of them are risqué or gruesome this time around. Overall, The Village is a thrilling, suspenseful, intense adventure that is sure to entertain, amaze, and very likely chill your teens to the bone.