The Silence

In general, the movie is 'OK', although I'd recommend drinking while you do, so that you are less sober toward the end of the movie.

The acting doesn't spoil the movie. Quite the opposite, it's good. What makes the movie troublesome is how shallow and poorly thought through the storyline is. So 'Vesps' are blind and orient only by sound. The hard reality is that they would die outside in the wild. Animals would make sounds and all be wiped out. Sounds are everywhere; the wind blows = sound. Water flowing = sound.

Also they are found in a cave and then in short order (weeks) the USA is decimated... it is not possible for a species that size to reproduce so rapidly as to cause that. Biology is still subject to the laws of physics and you just cannot give birth to that many creatures in that short a time period. The material that makes them has to come from somewhere... and that just takes time.

And then the seeming inability of anyone in government to coordinate any resistance when quite ordinary people figure out the weakness instantly? I know movies are about the suspension of disbelief, but some plots really push this a little too far...Just put up sirens, nets etc.

But that is actually nothing compared to the last third of the movie when the 'nut jobs' enter the scene (the reverend of the cult).... what the actual f..k? Up to that point the movie was 'so-so', but that just pushed the movie from 6-7/10 stars to 4/10. From Dusk till Dawn handled the plot-break rather well. But this movie didn't.

The machine must be fed - The Silence is an okay movie made for a mass audience, and as all those pay-channels and whatever channels need "stuff" to air, the need for an endless stream of new shows and movies is great. This simply results to that immense output of mediocre to underachieving movies/shows: quantity rules our days and not quality.

Anyway, with the same cast and the same production but a better and more careful composed script and directing, this movie could have been a really good one.

The Silence: only recommendable for the aficionado of the genre (post-apocalypse with alien/monsters), and only if you really got nothing else on the plate.

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

Some deadly bats, with the ability to overpower and kill humans, have escaped from their enclave, and have their sights set on taking over the world. Hugh Andrews (Stanley Tucci) must protect his family, including his daughter Ally (Kiernan Shipka) who suffers from acute deafness, and needs to communicate in sign language, which comes in handy since the terrifying flying beasts react most forcefully to sound.

Horror has become a genre as largely manufactured as pop music these days, an original idea an occasional bonus, secondary to cheap CGI and jump scares. And so, the recent theatrically released A Quiet Place, divided opinion, a creative premise at least, in spite of its outlandishness. Its certainly that film that first springs to mind when presented with The Silence, despite also being a hodgepodge of other such films in the cultural consciousness, including The Mist and Cloverfield.

Despite arriving in its shadow, I'd still consider The Silence the better film between it and AQP. It at least establishes something in the way of human connection with the main characters, and takes the time to develop them in an effective way, meaning we care about them more. Its also easier to digest some flying, killer bats than it is giant, spider like things. Performances wise, Tucci is sturdy and reliable in the lead, strongly supported by Shipka in the crucial role as his deaf daughter.

It's impressive and effective, for a film that manages to cram it all into ninety minutes. While not a perfect film, its certainly a huge step up from a guy whose directorial debut was Mortal Kombat: Annihilation! ***

Basic biology would have it that in their natural environment deep underground, these voracious carnivores must have been feeding on a population of herbivores with at least ten times their biomass. I'm not sure what the underground herbivores feed on, but presumably there's a whole underground flora that gets by without photosynthesis. These herbivores must be pretty ferocious themselves, since they have forced the egg-laying bats to evolve such deadly teeth and talons. Though slower than the bat-things, eventually they too will figure out how to crawl through the same hole to the surface.

So I'm thinking sequel: "The Bleat," in which a race of killer sheep invade the eastern U.S., and every action scene begins with a terrifying "Baaaaa!" At first the desperate humans just try to kill them, for instance by tying cowbells around their necks to attract the killer bats, but eventually our heroes learn to shear them and use the wool to make bat-resistant winter garments.

I enjoyed the acting (especially Stanley Tucci and Miranda Otto but the whole cast is worthy of interest), the photography, the general atmosphere, but I moderately appreciated the last third of the movie. Although the post-apocalyptic atmosphere consecutively to the invasion of huge bats as blind as voracious is rather successful, the atmosphere changes after the meeting with the reverend. This is definitely a key milestone: the movie becomes then surrealistic and almost laughable. This was naively developed: the group formed around the reverend depreciates the film by polluting it.

My rating before the meeting with the reverend: 6 of 10. And after: 4/5 of 10. Frustrating!