The Village Vortex: Arya’s Horror Flick Deserves a Script and Budget Glow-Up

Milind Rau’s ‘The Village’ Struggles to Carve Its Own Path: A Blend of Tamil and Hollywood Influences, Yet Lacking in Novelty, Our Review Suggests.

Arya Takes the Plunge into the World of Streaming with ‘The Village’: Adapted from a Graphic Novel, the Horror Thriller Unveils a Ghost Village’s Haunting Past. Milind Rau’s Direction Sparks Curiosity with a Blend of Nature Conservation and Superstitions. Does ‘The Village’ Deliver on the Promise of Gore and Social Commentary? Let’s Dive into the Verdict!

Gautham (Arya), a dedicated doctor, shares his life with wife Neha (Divya Pillai), daughter Maya (Baby Aazhiya), and the lively beagle, Hectic! A seemingly ordinary road trip from Chennai to Thoothukudi takes a spine-chilling turn when their car breaks down in the eerie village of Kattiyal. Meanwhile, Prakash (Arjun Chidambaram) dispatches a mercenary group led by Farhan (John Kokken) on a mission to gather mysterious samples.

For seasoned Tamil film enthusiasts, the storyline of ‘The Village’ may ring familiar bells, following a predictable trajectory. The web series delves into the impact of industry and medical waste on the lifestyle of a specific community. Unfortunately, the show becomes a redundant showcase of clichéd scenes, coupled with a lacklustre screenplay and uninspiring dialogues, making ‘The Village’ a rather wearisome watch.

When Milind Rau unveils the forest of Kattiyal, intended as the extraction site for Farhan’s team, a chuckle escapes you. It’s a moment reminiscent of imagining ‘Avatar’ with a tight budget—the trees adorned in neon hues! As pledged, ‘The Village’ delivers on its promise of gore, featuring slashed intestines, bodies cleaved in half, and a grisly spectacle of men. Yet, the intended fear or disgust doesn’t quite materialise. After a certain point, the gruesome scenes morph into something resembling cartoon characters rather than invoking genuine horror.

A modest rating of 1.5 out of 5 stars for ‘The Village’

Farhan’s mercenary crew lacks the expected punch, their cold demeanor failing to instill much confidence. The flashbacks touch upon familiar themes of oppression, discrimination, corporate encroachment on villages, and health hazards—a well-worn path in Tamil cinema. Unfortunately, ‘The Village’ seems to lack the effort to infuse fresh ideas into this well-explored narrative.

On the performance front, Arya’s portrayal appears somewhat out of sync, especially in navigating emotional scenes. The saving grace lies in the commendable performances of Aadukalam Naren and Muthukumar, essaying the roles of Shakthivel and Karunagam, respectively. Arjun Chidambaram, portraying a cunning businessman and a spoiled brat, manages a decent performance, adding some substance to the series.

‘The Village’ unfolds a tale that feels trapped in the past, a redundant narrative that fails to ignite the desire for a binge-watch across its six episodes, each ranging from 35 to 45 minutes. The latter half of the story, though well-intentioned, stretches excessively and lacks the substance needed to hold viewer interest. With a sharper focus on the screenplay, Milind Rau could have transformed ‘The Village’ into a more compelling horror thriller.

Milind Rau takes the reins as director in the thrilling world of ‘The Village,’ a six-episode saga with a writing collaboration from 

Deepthi Govindarajan and Deeraj Vaidy. The cast includes Arya, Divya Pillai, Aadukalam Naren, and George Maryan, unfolding over a duration of 255 minutes. Catch ‘The Village’ on Amazon Prime Video, where the suspense and chills unfold with every episode.

Rau’s mastery in the realm of splatter horror is evident from the get-go in the opening sequence of ‘The Village.’ The atmosphere is charged with spilled blood, and the body count rises as an unforeseen incident disrupts the life of a family navigating the desolate roads of Thoothukudi in the dead of night. What sets You apart is his vivid imagination, crafting deaths that captivate us not just for their morbidity, but for the creative flair reminiscent of international zombie outbreak films. For enthusiasts of fictional gore, ‘The Village’ offers a unique beauty in the exploration of recreational fear, skillfully curated by Rau.

‘The Village’ draws its narrative roots 

‘The Village’ draws its narrative roots from the graphic novel of the same name, penned by Ashwin Srivatsa Ngam, Shamik Dasgupta, and Vivek Rangachari. This six-episode journey is scripted by the collaborative efforts of Milind Rau, V Deeraj Vaidy, and Deepthi Govindarajan.

The generous serving of gore, while propelling the narrative forward, also serves as a welcome distraction from some of the glaring plot holes. One wonders, as Gautham stumbles upon the site of Kattiyal’s wrath, whether a simple sign cautioning, “Take this shortcut at your own peril,” might have spared some unwary travellers from their eerie fate.

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