M. Night Shyamalan

The Woods

6.6

A series of events tests the beliefs of a small isolated countryside village.

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Main Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Joaquin Phoenix, Bryce Dallas Howard, William Hurt, Adrien Brody
Soundtrack: James Newton Howard
Cinematography: Roger Deakins
Screenplay: M. Night Shyamalan

Original Title: The Village

Cinema Premiere: July 30, 2004

What do English critics think?

2 english reviews of The Woods (2004)

1. Empire

8 / 10

The denouement will infuriate and enthral, but Shyamalan's latest is made with elegance.
- William Thomas
Empire »
2. Rolling Stone

7.5 / 10

"The Woods", even when its step falters, is on to something more provocative than seeing dead people. Its power, unrelated to digital monsters, comes from the tension building inside the characters.
- Peter Travers
Rolling Stone »

5 foreign reviews of The Woods (2004)

1. Fredrik Fyhr

Positive, no rating

Translated from swedish: All of M. Night Shyamalan's films deal with this deeply human dilemma - that man is born into a terrifying, random world and must find enlightenment by venturing out into it and broadening his horizons. Or, equally, lock himself in isolation, create a prison of fear. But none of Shyamalan's films bear more sharpness and complexity than "The Woods".
- Fredrik Fyhr
Swedish: fredrikfyhr.se »
2. Game Reactor

7 / 10

Translated from swedish: High-class acting, fine photography in yellow and red color scales, and a heavy, ominous atmosphere are the keywords that characterize "The Woods", even though one had hoped that the film's resolution would have been given more time.
- Anna Eklund
Swedish: gamereactor.se »
3. Russin

6 / 10

Translated from swedish: The fact that I do not double up in derision over the resolution here is largely due to the atmosphere of seriousness and searching that is evoked from scratch and to the actors (most of them at least) acting as if this were a story about real people and not just loading up for the twisted final credits sequence that everyone expects from Shyamalan.
- Johan Lindahl
Swedish: russin.nu »
4. Moviezine

4 / 10

Translated from swedish: The biggest surprise is Bryce Dallas Howard in the role of the blind Ivy, perhaps the only reason to even bother checking out "The Woods"?
- Alexander Kardelo
Swedish: moviezine.se »
5. Aftonbladet

2 / 10

Translated from swedish: At times hilarious, but mostly just sad.
- Jan-Olov Andersson
Swedish: aftonbladet.se »