Silence Becomes You (2005) Reviews

• Nicely Done

  aimless-462009-11-10

  I caught the last 30 minutes of "Silence Becomes You" on cable and was intrigued enough to order the DVD. The DVD would have benefited from a director's commentary as the film is annoyingly vague at times (even to me) and I imagine that most viewers would welcome some clarification. My favorable first impression was probably a combination of the great production design, the excellent acting for the camera direction, and the understated yet inventive editing. It was filmed in Lithuania in HD video (said to be the first feature film with 100% digital cinematography), a technique that allowed the production staff to see each days rushes immediately so they could make timely rewrite and re-shoot decisions. "Silence Becomes You" was written and directed by Stephanie Sinclaire, the Associate Artistic Director of the internationally known Kings Head Theatre in London. Her stage background shines through the production as all three of her main characters are given a nice multi-dimensionality. They are all flawed yet to varying degrees sympathetic. Take the assorted plot summaries and comments about this film with a certain grain of salt. It is about two 20-something half-sisters (if you credit certain statements and make an inference) who are still living together in the estate where they grew up. Alicia Silverstone plays Violet and Sienna Guillory plays Grace. They have decided that Violet should have a baby and lure a roguish drifter named Luke (Joe Anderson) to the estate for the purpose of getting her pregnant. There is a fourth character, the house, which exercises a considerable hold and influence over the two women. This relationship is represented by frequent memory flashbacks to their father and their childhood. The two young actresses who play them as little girls (most likely chosen for their physical similarity to Silverstone and Guillory) are convincingly directed by Sinclaire and their frequent appearances give the film a lyrical quality. As in Terrance Mallick's "Days of Heaven" (1978), the four principal characters represent the four elements; earth (the house), water (Violet), fire (Grace), and wind (Luke). The principal dynamic being how the least transitory element holds the three elusive elements in place. Most of the complaints about the film seem to center on Sinclaire's frequent misdirection, the viewer only knows what she wants you to know and when she wants you to know it. There does seem to be vagueness for the sake of vagueness, or at least in the service of introducing complexity to a relatively simple story. The girls have a degree of paranormal skills and there is a strong mental connection between them; qualities that their alchemist father (lead into gold is his metaphor for reproduction) went to great trouble to develop. Sinclaire violates the language of film with this and with her inconsistent flashback techniques; confusing the viewer about what is real, what is mystical, what is a dream, and what is simply a memory. So the film is unable to decide between being a ghost story or a psychological melodrama. Yet in the end all this stuff fits into the final explanation so as long as you get it there is little cause for complaint. This is a must see for Silverstone fans, by far the best thing she has ever done. Helped by an excellent acting for the camera director and an quality ensemble she is quite impressive. To me her face has always seemed slightly off-balance, making her an excellent fit playing a character that is somewhat off-kilter. Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child. Comment Comment | Permalink

• Eerie, art-house movie

  lol-cadbury2006-01-25

  It was an interesting premise for a movie, however, it had the tendency to lose it's impetus by attempting to be too art house. It captured the interest by keeping the watcher intent on working out exactly who was trying to achieve what and with whom but, more importantly why? It made for a kind of Charmed meets tortured soul effect, not, it has to be said a great combination for a movie. The dynamic of the sisters with their warped control freak father was nicely worked, leaving the watcher to draw their own conclusions about exactly what he got up to when mom wasn't looking. Interesting boho kitsch costume for the girls and a nice stud muffin too!

• Kind of a spoiler?

  everybodyissomeone2007-08-07

  While I agree that the plot of this movie is sporadic, I disagree that it's illogical and "shitty." The two sisters, to me, represented opposites. Revenge vs. Forgiveness, Giving in vs. Overcoming, etc. After all, the father said at one point, "When the black of destruction and white light of creation come together, they do not create rain but all of the colors in the rainbow." The sisters', especially Grace's, comments seemed to prove that they were obsessed with the past, with an imaginary life. They were in love with fiction, with magic, not with the disappointment and cyclic routine of normal life. They were in love with a dream. I'm sure someone will say, "That interpretation is retarded. The movie is a horror an nothing more." However, I rarely find that anything is one thing and not another. This movie is a psychological thriller, but can it not have some underlying themes as well? The world is rarely black and white. (Yes, that last sentence is a reference to my opinion of the conclusion of the movie.)

• a darkly beautiful tale, seductive with thriller overtones

  silencego2005-09-29

  Silence Becomes You is a beautifully shot, fantastically scored dark tale of innocence and seduction. Two sisters bring home a man on a dare. A game of chance spirals into higher and higher stakes and finally out of control. Alicia Silverstone's character Violet is child-like, emotionally reactive, charming, seductive and free-spirited. Sienna Guillory's Grace is cool, erotic, manipulative, brilliant and increasingly unhinged. Joe Anderson's Luke is the good looking drifter, funny, irreverent, angry and vulnerable who reveals a strong inner compass that leads us to an explosive and finally poignant ending. Like a sailor dragged to the shore by mermaids Luke is picked up and brought to the strange, colorful, dysfunctional paradise of the two sisters who's closeness is often telepathic. He can't believe his luck, at first. Gradually the house reveals the secrets of the past which haunt the present and as Luke gets drawn further and further into the web the fragile balance becomes increasingly disturbed. The sisters, hot-housed by their father, brilliantly played by Leigh Lawson, have been raised as experiments and ruthlessly surveyed. Their freedom is in theory as they live in the golden cage of their own psyche. Grace follows in her father's foot steps whereas Violet longs to escape into a 'normal life'. Luke is forced to feel with devastating but ultimately cathartic consequences. With a nod to the classic suspense movies of the 40's (Visual Consultant was esteemed Academy Award winning cinematographer Jack Cardiff) it is a good ride, engaging, suspenseful and ultimately satisfying.

• Breathtaking...(I click spoiler because I revealed a slight twist in the plot but it's not a real spoiler.)

  butterflysteph12006-01-08

  Forget the trailer-it is so far from the actual plot of the movie it's laughable...written, directed and produced by Stephanie Sinclair, this movie centers around two very much interconnected sisters and they're unhealthy dependence on each other. Shaped by they're extremely intelligent, however mad father the women have grown and developed a kind of make believe world of heroines and sirens and alchemy. Their world revolves around art, language, beauty and magic. Their bond is so evident that they actual can sense each others physical pain; when an outsider interferes with their world one of the sisters slips into madness, you almost root for the insanity to win out. Alicia Silverstone is adorable as always, Sienna Guillory is brilliant and Joe Anderson is not lacking however slightly miscast. Beautifully shot and visually stunning, "Silence Becomes You" is definitely worth the watch...