The Village

            

Oh, it's an M. Night Shyamalan movie? Alright. I wonder what the twist will be... Maybe the monsters are their future selves. Maybe the elders are aliens. Maybe it's set in a post-apocalyptic future. Maybe it's set in the future on a colony planet. Maybe they're all dead and the monsters are alive. Maybe it's set in the present.

The last one.

That's literally it. That's the twist. It was one of the possibilities I ran through during the film, and one of the less interesting ones to boot. It's not revealed in a particularly interesting way, either. We see a fairly modern paper, then a fairly modern photo, then cut to a modern car as the penny drops. I think either a big shocker reveal (maybe she breaks through a dense piece of brush to reveal a sprawling city that she can't see) or a slow-burn (where it gradually becomes increasingly clear that they are living in the present - a good example of this is in 'Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens' with the info that Ren is Han and Leia's kid (and good choice there too, as a repeat of the big reveal in 'Empire' would have been terrible)) would have been better.
The acting was fine though and the characters were often enjoyable and real-feeling. I kind of liked the central couple, and got some nice Austin vibes off the whole setup. Shyamalan creates tension and a creepy atmosphere expertly, and this pervades much of the film without it feeling too bogged down.
                

                       
It is a fairly slow movie, and this will be a problem for some, but I think the pacing works pretty well with the story. It's not so much a traditional horror as a mystery-thriller really.

                   

The Village: 34.2