I feel this is an easy movie to trash, but I remember enjoying it - mostly - in cinema. And back then I was studying film in Uni. One of the things I learnt in those 7 years ( and the studying and watching of 1000s of movies ) is to see the positives in almost any work. Now I'm not gonna tell you I don't smell a bad movie when I see it, it's just that it's so much easier to find flaws in any film than to be positive about it ( not saying that you do ) :>)
By the way, I'm not necessarily a fan of Shyamalan. I found Unbreakable boring, Signs pretty disappointing as goes for Lady in the Water. And I'm not even gonna tell you what I thought of After Earth and The Last Airbender.
The Village mainly worked for me in the mood department. Camera, lighting, sound, suspense, setting. At least a huge part of the film. I also tend to forgive movies for a mediocre ending or twist if they make up for it in other areas. In the end, the ending is just a small part of a film ;>)
Alright, I'm off to watch a film on MUBI.