This is a now a blog where I review dystopian films.
Only sometimes, promise. I'm still not sure what I want this blog to be, but I know I'm interested in writing again. After Heartbeat Sound, which is my book of poetry about my eating disorder, I've done no writing besides some poems, which is okay. I'm just used to novel writing and want to get back to that soon, and blog writing. I needed a break, I think, after Heartbeat Sound, and my eating disorder itself. To learn how to be well. To exist in a new body. Even after the eating disorder left, I struggled with depression and wanting to be alive. Maybe I'll write about that another time. Right now I want to write about end of the world movies you've probably never seen and maybe don't want to ever see. Oh, but how I love them.
First off, if you haven't seen A Quiet Place with Jim from the Office and Emily Blunt, you need to. I got my mother, the most gentle and kind and only wants to watch the 1990 version of Little Women to watch it and she found it not awful, which is a lot. She did cry, however.
The movie I'm going to be talking about today is not A Quiet Place, but is somewhat like it. It takes place in the United States after creatures inhabit the country that attack anything that makes noise. This film is called The Silence, and it's on Netflix.
It's not great. But I watched it, so I'm gonna write about it to justify the time it took to watch it. There were some decent moments in the film I wanted to note on, and I'll try not to spoil it too much, in case you do watch it. I'll also include a rating and a pro/con list, with similar films you might enjoy at the very end.
Netflix Description
When the world is under attack from terrifying creatures who hunt their human prey by sound, 16-year old Ally Andrews (Kiernan Shipka), who lost her hearing at 13, and her family seek refuge in a remote haven. But they discover a sinister cult who are eager to exploit Ally's heightened senses.
Pros
Having a deaf character as a main character, including sign language throughout the film, decent casting (Stanley Tucci, Keirnan Shipka, and Miranda Otto), a dystopian film (there's not enough in my opinion, especially good ones), and some pretty good moments, looking at interesting ideas such as having a dog in an apocalypse or an infant
Cons
Some really dumb dialogue, some real dumb stuff, too fast of a collapse to total anarchy, and a mess of a plot, kind of an exact replica of A Quiet Place but way worse, and worst of all: DOG DEATH (also people death, lots, but dog death hits me hard in movies)
Thoughts and Major Plot Fails
The initial outbreak of the creatures themselves, (sightless, ancient pterodactyl-like creatures called vesps) happens over the course of a day in upper New York. By three in the morning the day after vesps begin attacking humans, the entire state is in a panic, so the family sets off on the run in their mini van. Literally one day later, they run into a religious cult called the Hushed that becomes the main problem in their lives.
One problem I struggled with in the film is that the Hushed all have healed cut out tongues and a large body of followers in such a short amount of time. Did they predict this was gong to happen? Why did they choose to live in silence before creatures attacked the country that preyed upon noise? Do they know you can still have a tongue and not make noise? All of this remains to be seen. Also, the description of the film itself states that this cult is interested in the main character, a 17 year old girl named Ally, because of her heightened senses as a result of her becoming deaf. This is never the case. They want her because she is "fertile" which implies they want to rebuild the world. IT'S BEEN TWO DAYS since this attack started. Give it a week at least. I think it would take longer for people to become interested in repopulation, as they have no clear means on how to fight the vesps at all besides a knowledge that they cannot survive in cold regions of the planet.
The other main issue I found while watching is with the idea that Ally has heightened senses. Ally became deaf due to a car accident a few years prior to the movie, and she can hear some loud sounds like her dog barking. She notices things that predict the vesps' coming, such as her dog's fur standing up. And at one point in the movie, the whole world is silent, and she has a voiceover that says something like "it's too silent." Girl. You're supposed to be deaf; how can you know that everything is suddenly quiet? I would understand if she knew if everything was loud, because that was established, but that confused me.
It's small things like this that just don't make sense that make the movie not very good. For example. Ally is deaf so she and her entire family use sign language. However, they also speak in whispers as they sign. Probably for the viewers but if these creatures can hear a snake hissing, they can hear you whispering. Just commit to a film with no actors speaking - it's been done before and done well (A Quiet Place). Also, I want to mention that I am not hating on the fact that Ally speaks even though she is deaf; that makes sense to me, as many non-hearing people, even people who are deaf from birth can speak. It's just the inconsistencies of sound, which is the POINT of the movie, that bothered me.
Also, the main point of the movie, as shown in the trailer, is when Ally and her family realize what's happening: that they have to be silent, and Ally says dramatically. "I know what it's like to live in silence." And it's supposed to be this big hopeful thing that shows how they are going to survive. I get that, but Ally precedes to make SO MUCH NOISE throughout the film. She can't hear herself. I understand that the family's ability to speak with ASL is so helpful in this situation, but Ally only experiencing silence by being deaf does not mean she has the capacity to be silent for the rest of her life. She's a person, and people scream when they're startled, like she does, and step on twigs, etc. And also Facetime their boyfriends in the middle of an apocalypse where you're not supposed to make sound and TALK to each other. So dumb.
The final main issue I found with the film is that these creatures came from underground and seemingly take over the entire country in a few days. Social media and news outlets state that entire areas of the country are gray areas - or areas so devastated that they have lost power altogether and internet access and returned to lifestyle like the Middle Ages. Maybe such devastation could happen in a few days, because the creatures can fly, but just how many creatures were there??? They're the size of corgis and the amount of creatures following a family of 5 in rural New York (which is like several thousand) suggests catastrophic numbers of these creatures existing underground. How? They flew across the OCEAN? The military and people don't have enough guns to just shoot them? People are living like it's the middle ages after three days? So many questions, so little logic.
You can still watch the film from what I've written with not that many spoilers, just so you know. I think I did a really good job at not spoiling it while still picking apart the parts that bothered me. You'll have to watch it and let me know. Or don't and trust me. Let me know if you do, though, so we can talk about it. I love quite a few of the actors and this genre so we can chat for awhile about it, no problem.
Final Rating: 2/10, 1 out of 5 stars
Movies I recommend that are similar to The Silence but better:
The Quiet Place - a good film with a pretty similar premise (don't make sound or you'll die) that involves the use of sign language and how to protect your children in an apocalyptic situation. I'd give it a 9/10. Free on Amazon Prime.
Bird Box - follows a premise of don't see or you'll die. Involves being pregnant during an apocalypse and has Sandra Bullock. I love this movie and watch it often, but I'm pretty sure everyone hates it but I love it. If you hate it, I'm sorry. I give it an 8/10 *chef's kiss*. Free on Netflix.
Mom and Dad - don't be a kid around your parents or you'll die. This movie as a comedy as well, and has THE NICOLAS CAGE in it. Nicky C. and his wife are the parents of two children and appear to be a happy, normal family until all parents in the United States start trying to attack their own kids. 6 or 7 out of 10. Free on Hulu.
The Last Days - a Spanish film with the premise of don't go outside or you'll die. Free on Hulu and I really liked it. 5/10. Has subtitles.
A Breath Away - don't breathe or you'll die. A French film about a couple racing to save their child who lives in a sterile hospital environment from an impending cloud of polluted air. Free on Amazon Prime. Has subtilties. 3/10.
The Mist - don't go in the Mist or you'll die. It's a Steven King one, baby, and it's super dark. I think about it at night sometimes still. Don't watch it, oh my gosh, but it's not bad. 5/10.
The Birds - don't go by the birds or you'll die. I saw this as a child and have not seen it since, so I can't tell you much about it but I remember being scared for sure. Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 95% which is very high, so it's probably worth a watch.
Final Note
Also, I acknowledge the fact that I may be weird for how much I adore dystopian and apocalyptic films, especially zombie and end of the world films. I'm sorry; I feel bad. I love people and never want anything like these films to happen, ever. I just really enjoy aspects regarding survival and fighting to stay alive and coming together as a species to make it. I also like to be scared and freaked out. I understand if you don't. If you don't like being scared, Pride and Prejudice is officially on Netflix and I watched it this week and it made me smile. If you're like me, and zombies are your absolute fav, check out Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. You won't be disappointed.
Much love always,
gabbie
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