Silence - directed by Martin Scorsese
This is apparently a very personal film for Martin Scorsese.
His Catholicism and his relationship with religion is present in many (if not all) of his films at least to some extent.
In fact it has been in his mind since shortly after he made his most overtly religious movie "The Last Temptation of Christ" in 1988.
It is very much (to use his own words) a 'passion project' which goes a way towards explaining the 15 years of re-writes after Scorsese was dissatisfied with his 1991 first draft.
Of course he did complete a script that he was happy with and finally in 2016 shooting began.
The end result is an almost three hour film that has divided critics and reviewers alike.
Not usually a bad sign.
I'm probably at a disadvantage going into this movie from one perspective.
I am not religious and I am sure if I was Catholicism wouldn't be my choice.
Having said that I am fascinated by people who are staunch in their faith and I often find that they make compelling movie characters.
As a movie about Portuguese Catholic priests in 1600's Japan spreading the word of God "Silence" has many such characters.
Chiefly Fathers Sebastião Rodrigues and Francisco Garupe based in Macao.
The men are the students of a priest named Cristóvão Ferreira who has allegedly denounced his faith while in Japan.
The two young men are adamant that they be allowed to pursue the truth of the matter and so off to Japan they go.
Upon meeting christians they discover that the religion has been forced underground and they must practice discreetly and under the guise of being Buddhists.
There is a concerted effort by the rulers of the country to squash christianity and anyone who has seen any mini series or movie from "Shogun" to "147 Ronin" knows that the methods are probably not going to be along the lines of a quiet word or a cash bribe.
The very first scene in this film hints at what is to come with a flashback to Father Ferreira being made to watch as his colleagues are tortured with hot spring water.
The idea is that if the strongest of the Priests can be made to denounce his religion in return for the cessation of the torturing of his charges then Christianity can be wiped out.
To be fair (or maybe not) to the Japanese methods here they do employ some wickedly cunning coercion combined with some compelling arguments.
There is a reasonable amount of balance here.
After all these men have travelled to another country where their religion is at odds with the predominant local one and are asking to be allowed to not only practice it but convert any locals who feel the urge.
There are several scenes of debate between Andrew Garfield's Rodrigues and The Inquisitor - the local Japanese governor who is determined to stifle christianity.
There are very valid reasons put forth by both men.
It is when ideas such as the possibility of religions co-existing are at the fore that I found "Silence" the most compelling.
Unfortunately the almost three hour running time is also weighed down heavily by long scenes where not an awful lot is done to advance the plot.
Scorsese is interested in faith being challenged and what it takes to retain it and so the entire movie becomes a trial for the beliefs of Father Rodrigues.
Garfield is very good here but I found that the film dragged after the first half hour.
It hints at great danger and there is an ominous tone through this first portion.
The threat of real violence hangs over the film and in particular over a group of Japanese Christians who in many ways have a faith stronger than the two Priests.
There is also a Japanese fisherman who has renounced his faith previously and will do it again at least twice in order to avoid death.
This character is a key one and provides a sort of counterpoint to Father Rodrigues' conflicted faith.
The title of the film comes from the idea that God remains silent and therefore how can anyone know that he is present at all.
It is the essence of faith of course.
As good as Garfield is I was missing the presence of Driver and particularly Neeson both of whom disappear from the screen for an extended period - one more than the other.
I like both actors generally but in this film it is Neeson's character who holds the most mystery.
It is Ferreira after all whose faith has apparently gone and the entire premise of the film seems designed to bring he and Father Rodrigues together so that the fallen and shaky can challenge each others beliefs.
It comes but it takes so long to get there that I was exhausted and pining for end credits long before it does.
In fact when the long looming violence does come it is less shocking than it is a relief to have some action.
I am sure that is not at all the intention that Scorsese had!
Thirty minutes culled from this film would have done it a favour.
There isn't a thing wrong with the performances (although the Inquisitor comes off as cartoonish and out and out goofy much of the time) and the cinematography and editing is as good as we have come to expect from a Scorsese movie.
The problem is that for all the time spent with the lead character I still didn't feel invested in his plight or indeed entirely clear what it was at all times.
RATING: 68 / 100
CONCLUSION: Definitely lesser Scorsese this is bloated and the characters are hard to identify with. I felt more dislike for the 'villains' than I did respect or admiration for the heroes and that just doesn't work for a movie like this.
Starring: Liam Neeson, Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, Ciaran Hinds, Tadanobu Asano, Shin'ya Tsukamoto, Yoshi Oida, Diego, Yōsuke Kubozuka, Calderón, Rafael Kading, Matthew Blake, Benoit Masse, Tetsuya Igawa
Screenplay: Jay Cocks & Martin Scorsese
Music Score by: Kathryn Kluge & Kim Allen Kluge
Cinematography: Rodrigo Prieto
Edited by: Thelma Schoonmaker
Running Time: 161 minutes
Language: English & Japanese
Rated: R16 - Violence including torture
Running Time: 161 minutes
Language: English & Japanese
Rated: R16 - Violence including torture
His Catholicism and his relationship with religion is present in many (if not all) of his films at least to some extent.
In fact it has been in his mind since shortly after he made his most overtly religious movie "The Last Temptation of Christ" in 1988.
It is very much (to use his own words) a 'passion project' which goes a way towards explaining the 15 years of re-writes after Scorsese was dissatisfied with his 1991 first draft.
Of course he did complete a script that he was happy with and finally in 2016 shooting began.
The end result is an almost three hour film that has divided critics and reviewers alike.
Not usually a bad sign.
I'm probably at a disadvantage going into this movie from one perspective.
I am not religious and I am sure if I was Catholicism wouldn't be my choice.
Having said that I am fascinated by people who are staunch in their faith and I often find that they make compelling movie characters.
As a movie about Portuguese Catholic priests in 1600's Japan spreading the word of God "Silence" has many such characters.
Chiefly Fathers Sebastião Rodrigues and Francisco Garupe based in Macao.
The men are the students of a priest named Cristóvão Ferreira who has allegedly denounced his faith while in Japan.
The two young men are adamant that they be allowed to pursue the truth of the matter and so off to Japan they go.
Upon meeting christians they discover that the religion has been forced underground and they must practice discreetly and under the guise of being Buddhists.
There is a concerted effort by the rulers of the country to squash christianity and anyone who has seen any mini series or movie from "Shogun" to "147 Ronin" knows that the methods are probably not going to be along the lines of a quiet word or a cash bribe.
 |
| Ciaran Hinds and Liam Neeson |
The idea is that if the strongest of the Priests can be made to denounce his religion in return for the cessation of the torturing of his charges then Christianity can be wiped out.
To be fair (or maybe not) to the Japanese methods here they do employ some wickedly cunning coercion combined with some compelling arguments.
There is a reasonable amount of balance here.
After all these men have travelled to another country where their religion is at odds with the predominant local one and are asking to be allowed to not only practice it but convert any locals who feel the urge.
There are several scenes of debate between Andrew Garfield's Rodrigues and The Inquisitor - the local Japanese governor who is determined to stifle christianity.
There are very valid reasons put forth by both men.
It is when ideas such as the possibility of religions co-existing are at the fore that I found "Silence" the most compelling.
 |
| Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver |
Scorsese is interested in faith being challenged and what it takes to retain it and so the entire movie becomes a trial for the beliefs of Father Rodrigues.
Garfield is very good here but I found that the film dragged after the first half hour.
It hints at great danger and there is an ominous tone through this first portion.
The threat of real violence hangs over the film and in particular over a group of Japanese Christians who in many ways have a faith stronger than the two Priests.
There is also a Japanese fisherman who has renounced his faith previously and will do it again at least twice in order to avoid death.
This character is a key one and provides a sort of counterpoint to Father Rodrigues' conflicted faith.
The title of the film comes from the idea that God remains silent and therefore how can anyone know that he is present at all.
It is the essence of faith of course.
 |
| Faith and the challenges it faces is the central idea of "Silence" |
I like both actors generally but in this film it is Neeson's character who holds the most mystery.
It is Ferreira after all whose faith has apparently gone and the entire premise of the film seems designed to bring he and Father Rodrigues together so that the fallen and shaky can challenge each others beliefs.
It comes but it takes so long to get there that I was exhausted and pining for end credits long before it does.
In fact when the long looming violence does come it is less shocking than it is a relief to have some action.
I am sure that is not at all the intention that Scorsese had!
Thirty minutes culled from this film would have done it a favour.
There isn't a thing wrong with the performances (although the Inquisitor comes off as cartoonish and out and out goofy much of the time) and the cinematography and editing is as good as we have come to expect from a Scorsese movie.
The problem is that for all the time spent with the lead character I still didn't feel invested in his plight or indeed entirely clear what it was at all times.
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