MOVE AWAY FROM `VILLAGE'.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Critic

WHEN YOU MAKE your living creating movies built on third-act twists and epiphanies, you have to figure that someday that shaky house of cards is going to crumble. That M. Night Shyamalan's ``The Village'' disintegrates before it ever really lays its foundation is the biggest surprise this tension-free movie has to offer. And really, how surprising is it, given that Shyamalan has so conditioned his audiences with his now-trademark approach that the guesswork has become more interesting than anything his movies present.

Of course, one could make the case that ``The Village'' is unlike anything Shyamalan has ever attempted. Apparently inspired by 20th Century Fox's offer - one that was rejected - to write and direct an adaptation of ``Wuthering Heights,'' Shyamalan has fashioned a swooning love triangle full of repression and earnestness. That's good news for Bronte fans, but may prove frustrating to longtime followers who expect a certain degree of otherworldly stimulation from his singular creations.

``The Village'' follows a group of people who live in relative bucolic bliss in an isolated, 19th-century-looking settlement that borders the woods. There is one problem. The forest is apparently inhabited by some fearsome, carnivorous creatures who possess large claws, howl at the moon and have an affinity for the color red. The elders have conditioned the villagers to live in mortal fear of these beasts, so much so that the creatures are always referred to as ``Those We Don't Speak Of.''

OK, so nobody has told these people not to end a sentence in a prepositional phrase. Other rites of passage seem to be fading, too. Stoic Lucius (Joaquin Phoenix) thinks maybe the time is right to venture through the woods - he figures he's pure in heart so the creatures won't touch him - in order to secure some much-needed medicine. Mentally unbalanced Noah (Adrien Brody) apparently has already made a few forays into the forest, maybe to impress the spirited, blind beauty Ivy (Bryce Dallas Howard). Her heart, though, belongs to Lucius.

The younguns' hankering to go to town coincides with an apparent uprising from the creatures. Obviously the two are related. Obviously. You catch my drift? That ... it's ... obvious?

The idea of making a movie about the way fear is used to control minds and limit freedoms is an interesting one and obviously timely in a post-9/11 world. But Shyamalan's movie explores it only superficially, falling back on a standard ``love conquers all'' message instead of delving into the implications and complexities of the subject.

He hasn't lost his eye as a director, but the story is a mess, boring at first and then becoming progressively sillier until it loses complete credibility during a finale that involves Ivy's father, town leader Edward Walker (William Hurt), making a decision that defies logic on every level. The outstanding cast - particularly young Howard (Ron's daughter), who's mesmerizing - hold your interest long after you've checked out on almost every other level. There's no guesswork here, other than wondering when Shyamalan will realize the need to reinvent himself.

Glenn Whipp, [phone]

glenn.whipp(at)dailynews.com

THE VILLAGE - Two stars

(PG-13: a scene of violence, frightening situations.)

Starring: Bryce Dallas Howard, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver.

Director: M. Night Shyamalan.

Running time: 1 hr. 47 min.

Playing: Wide release.

In a nutshell: The big Shyamalan surprise? ``The Village'' is a bore.

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Sigourney Weaver and William Hurt portray denizens of a community bordered by fearsome creatures in ``The Village.''