I wasn’t sure whether I would write a review about Silent Night given how “simple” this movie is and also due to its reception… that’s not great. On IMDb, it currently sits at 5.3/10 on Rotten Tomatoes; this film has a similar standing with a critic score of 58% and the audience one at 50%. You can tell it’s not that the film is bad, but many people just thought it was average. However, I am not one of them. Am I in the minority? Yes. Does this movie rely on what some might call a gimmick? Well… that’s more complex.
This “gimmick” may be the main reason some enjoy this film and some hate it, as for about 99% of the film, there is no dialogue. And I didn’t find it weird or “gimmicky”; I thought it worked, as Silent Night is a movie about silence that is louder than anything you have ever heard. It’s about a couple who lose their child during a gang shootout. When chasing after those who killed his son, Joel Kinnaman almost dies, but “luckily”, he survives and “only” can’t speak as his vocal cords are irreparably damaged. After he recovers, although voiceless now, he embarks on a revenge path.
I know what you are thinking: “Yay! Another revenge film? Great, we haven’t had one of those in… several weeks! I will be more than happy to skip it!” But this one is different. Let’s put aside the “gimmick” of this being, effectively, a dialogue-less film; I will address it later. Silent Night (mostly) worked for me due to its view on this revenge business and how it doesn’t celebrate it. Quite the contrary, if you look at what the movie shows you closely, you will see that it is due to Joel’s character being so adamant, not wanting nor willing to accept any help, that he loses everything. From his friends to his wife, to possibly himself.
The biggest example of that could be a scene towards the end I don’t think would be a spoiler. There is a massive shootout outside before we get to the “big boss”, and Brian (Joel’s character) is trying to save this cop. And despite his best intentions, he inadvertently gets her killed. That scene (to me) symbolised what this entire film was about – no matter your intentions, once you set yourself on this revenge path, there is no coming back. It’s a dark process that will eliminate everyone from your life, and you will do more damage than good. I liked this aspect, how despite Silent Night might seem to be “yet another movie that glorifies revenge”, it’s the exact opposite.
The movie itself is a vibe you need to get into. For the first 15 minutes or so, I wasn’t sure whether I would be able to get on the same wavelength, but once the movie started to unravel more and more, I managed to jump on that wavelength. What helped was having somebody as legendary as John Woo behind the camera (his first American film since 2003!), and the action sequences looked like it. During the big finale, there was a stair sequence that was awesome and worth seeing possibly even on its own. It almost seemed like Woo wanted to make a statement that despite not making Hollywood movies, he was still as sharp as ever.
Now, let’s talk about the “gimmick”. I thought it worked, as it never seemed forced. Every scene in this movie was purposefully staged to make the most out of our characters not talking, so we have text conversations, some distant dialogue, music from the radio… Silent Night is not a silent movie. It just plays with the idea of us understanding every action without having the need for words. And I admire that decision. I am not one of those who hate voiceovers, but any lesser movie would feel almost obliged to have a voiceover like: “I am so sad. The pain still hasn’t left my body. I have nobody, so now, I am not afraid to die.” I believe that in this movie, the silence is more than a gimmick, it fits the story, it fits the character, especially in the beginning when we see Brian processing that pain, that loss of his kid… I understand why people would hate that, but I am not one of those people.
What I will say is the last ten minutes seemed a bit rushed. This movie isn’t perfect, and, as I noted above, it mostly worked for me. The first 15 minutes and the last 10 minutes didn’t, especially since the final 10 minutes I was not sure whether we needed it. I am talking about the very last scene. I understand it’s about closure, but in a film like this one, I wished we would condense that scene into two minutes.
Overall, Silent Night is an interesting movie made by a legendary director who still has it. Yes, it’s a movie about revenge, but unlike many films about that topic, this one seems more honest about the idea of revenge and how it will ultimately cost you everything. I enjoyed that part, how it is an anti-revenge movie whilst doing something different and having little to no dialogue. Sure, not every scene/choice worked for me, but I would cautiously recommend this film, especially if you are a John Woo fan.
That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!
Until next time,
Luke
