The Village Review: Arya's OTT Debut Packs Plenty of Gore But Not Enough Good Horror! (LatestLY Exclusive)

The Village Review: Watching a graphic novel adaptation in Indian streaming content is a rarest of rare possibilities. The Village is based on the graphic novel of the same name by Shaumik Das Gupta. This Amazon Prime series does have novelty on its side which to a large extent manages to cover up its glaring flaws. The Village Full Series in HD Leaked on Torrent Sites & Telegram Channels for Free Download and Watch Online; Arya's Amazon Prime Show Is the Latest Victim of Piracy?.

The series opens on an obvious note of a dreadful night when a bus full of passengers became a victim of vicious ghoul-like creatures in an abandoned village called Kattiyal, Tamil Nadu. Many years later, Gautham (Arya) and his family take a detour to avoid highway traffic and end up in the fateful village. The car breaks down and Gautham leaves to get help. Meanwhile, his wife Neha (Divya Pillai) and daughter Maya get abducted by unidentified creatures of the village. Thus begins Gautham's search for his family, guided by locals Shakthivel (Aadukalam Naren), Karunagam (Muthukumar K) and Peter (George Maryan).

They aren't the only ones in this. A wheelchair-bound rich brat Prasad (Arjun Chidambaram) has tasked a mercenary group headed by Farhan (John Kokken) to find a precious element that can help his cause.

Some stories look great on paper and it takes quite a lot of work to make it screen-worthy. Creator Milind Rau has done a decent job of creating a world full of morbid creatures and haunted mansions. The six-episode works in its favour and so does the pace. There is no lack of thrills and shock value which will keep many hooked to the screens. Special mention for the makeup, costume and set design department. They have done a splendid job of creating a make-believe world.

Only if the presentation was enough, The Village would have been a great watch. The patchy storyline, disturbing CGI, and convenient twists mire the experience. The Village looks heavily inspired by the Resident Evil series with zombie-like creatures and mutated dogs. The creatures are just grotesque rather than scary. There's hardly any explanation for most of the sequences. What is that pulsating creature inside the tree? How have their powers mutated so much?

The story tries to jam together cult rituals, superstitions, tsunami, casteism, abuse, capitalism, and pedophilia but nothing comes across properly. They all seem like subplots used for effect and have no actual significance. The fact that these creatures can't withstand sunlight is revealed in episode 4. Before that you are only guessing the reason as nobody in the series has asked this question or even observed the same. Betaal Review: Viineet Kumar Fights The Walking Dead in Shah Rukh Khan’s Nerve-Racking but Thrilling Netflix Zombie Series.

Watch the trailer of The Village

Arya adds nothing to the character of the male lead. His portions are just reactive and sometimes, he can't even react well. For a person who has just lost his family, Arya is surprisingly relaxed in most of the scenes. He never comes across as a person panicking for his family's welfare. The stars of the series are Aadukalam Naren, Muthukumar K and George Maryan. They superbly shoulder the entire story.

Final Thought

While it is commendable to see a graphic novel getting adapted, the makers could have done so much more with the material. Apart from a few thrills, some shocking twists, a great set design, and perfect makeup, The Village has nothing new to offer to the audience. The Village streams on Amazon Prime.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 25, 2023 10:23 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).