Other Crap

Still only six reviews of The Village, which is now down to 67% positive.

A reader wrote in response to my earlier remarks, "It's probably not accurate to suggest that Shyamalan and Disney have been withholding "The Village" from critics: there may have been fewer earlier screenings, but the all-media screening in L.A. (with plenty of critics) was Tuesday night, which was a little later than usual but well within usual parameters. (Monday and Tuesday the week of release are normal; Thursday's a danger sign, and no all-media is an admission of defeat.) The most unusual thing was that invitations were Fedexed Monday morning, when they're usually mailed a couple of weeks early.

That said, they might have been wise to delay the screening even more. The smattering of applause at the end of the movie was pretty much balanced out by laughs, which also erupted when Shyamalan revealed his two big "twists," both of which should have been obvious to half the audience within five minutes of the start of the movie, if not before. I'm sure plenty of critics will buy this pretentious & portentous hogwash, but when the final tally is in I expect that a fair number will point out that the movie is a steaming load of horseshit. If it's any indication, the restroom chatter afterwards was not kind. Of course, that's just my opinion... "