Soundproof

I have just finished watching the premier of Soundproof on BBC2. I decided to catch it having read a preview in one of the papers, it sounded an interesting concept, one which could be make an original stab at the typical British urban thriller.

It was hyped as being the first drama in which sign language plays a major part in the plot. The result, like watching a subtitled film, is that you rely on your eyes rather than ears to take you through the plot. The acting was simply outstanding, Jospeh Mawl showed real emotion throughout his entire body, not just a quivering lip. It brought you into the character's sense of frustration, where he could not express yourself fully when it really mattered. The plot, one of four flatmates falls from a balcony, did not twist and turn like most thrillers on the BBC (Waking the Dead and Silent Witness), it was lean allowing the actors to really explore your characters, and for the viewer to completely immerse themselves in the claustrophobic experience.

I just watched this BBC gem! In recent months there have not been many good one off drama's, but this was great. Reading that the story involved deaf and hearing actors i was intrigued and thrilled to see that there was something of substance to watch. I wasn't let down!! The acting was of a very high class and not only that but the cast seemed to completely gel with their characters. Unlike a lot of Drama's UK and US the music and background noise did not take away from the actual story or overpower it, they were used perfectly to show the audience how it feels to have a loss of hearing and it really gave you something to think about even when it ended. It may not be a red herring filled plot with twists and turns, but the case involved was interesting and there was no dull minute in 90 minute show. All in all it was a complete hit in my book so well done BBC for putting it on and well done to everyone involved in making this brilliant piece of TV.

Perhaps wrongly marketed as a 'groundbreaking' film - due to the number of deaf, as well as hearing actors - this really should appeal to anyone. There are some subtitles, but I didn't find this to be a problem. If it had simply been released as a mainstream movie I doubt the 'deaf' factor would come into it. Anyway, I enjoyed it. There are two very well-known British actors - Susan Lynch & Neil Stuke - both excellent. Lynch is much under-rated in my book. Joseph Mawle gives an outstanding performance in the lead role as the accused deaf lodger.

The story is interesting without being over-complex, and the rapport between the characters is good. There's a real sense of the desperation that must be felt when accused of a crime by a society that seems to make little effort to understand you. How to make yourself heard? I think the 'whodunnit' factor is a little too transparent for hardened mystery buffs, but it manages to capture nicely the rather bleak, seedy British urban lifestyle. Not exactly gritty, but still realistic.

I don't think this is a cinema-release movie, but if you get a chance to see it, give it a go. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Recently, I watched 'The Man Who Wasn't There' on late-night TV, and the film was accompanied by signing. I found it almost unwatchable as a result. The whole point of this film is that the central character's language (both spoken and physical) is completely deadpan, and in conventional terms, inappropriate, in spite of the extreme situations he faces. But the signer was making big faces and extravagant gestures throughout the movie. Maybe this is an unusual film, maybe this was just a bad signer, but perhaps, one of the difficulties deaf people face is an inability to partake in the full subtlety of human interaction (the alternative view being that deaf people have wholly adequate means of communication and their main disability is the prejudice of the hearing). But these questions returned to me on watching 'Soundproof', a drama featuring both deaf and hearing characters, centred on the involvement of a volunteer translator in a police investigation. The film was quite effective in conveying the difficulties that deaf people can have. But some of the human interaction in the film seemed perfunctory. Perhaps this is because as a non-deaf individual, I don't know how to read the signs; perhaps it reflect the reality of life for the deaf; perhaps it's just a falling of this drama, but I found is hard to really believe in the characters' inter-relationships, or relate to them myself. I guess it didn't help that the two lead characters (one deaf, one not) were both treated with unearned sympathy throughout, while the bigoted character seemed fated from the start not to be redeemed. Perhaps the film's real failing was its attempt, through the character of the interpreter, to bridge two worlds at once. A story set wholly in the world of the deaf would not only have been braver, but also more enlightening.

Flatmates Chris, Connor, Dean and Jak return to their flat with their friends having stocked up on drink to continue their evening with a house party. The night ends abruptly when Chris falls from the balcony of the high rise flat. The police are called and everyone is questioned as to what happened, the relationship between those involved and the specifics of the night. As Dean is deaf, the police call in interpreter Penny to assist with the sign language. When Chris dies in hospital a few days later, the police bring in a couple of suspects for questions and Penny yet again finds herself questioning Dean while at the same time starting an entirely inappropriate relationship with him.

This film was sold in the UK on the back of it being an unusual mix of hearing and deaf actors using a mix of words and sign language. In fairness this aspect of it is a selling point because it is a rarity for a mainstream (primetime BBC2) dramatic film, but it is not the only thing it has going for it and you quickly get past the novelty value of this after the first 15 minutes or so. After this it just becomes a pretty good mystery drama that follows the current struggles of Dean and Penny, spliced through with flashbacks of the night leading up to Chris' death. It is an effective story that works well even if it could have done with a bit more pace and urgency at times. Instead of slickness it aims for a bit of depth but I didn't think it had the material required to pull it off – providing a backbone to the tale even if I wanted a nervous system and heart as well.

The cast are all pretty good. Lynch is good as our way into the story but her dilemmas are placed secondary as the film progresses and her role within the tale is not as concrete as I would have liked. Mawle is impressive as Dean and the film belongs to him. The material takes him an obvious path and I felt it pushed him away from the road where he could have developed more of a person, but he is still very strong. Support from Dunbar, Stuke, Colgan and others is all solid enough with no bad performances but on the whole the film was with Mawle and Lynch.

A good one-off drama then. Perhaps not as strong a film as the "deaf cast" hype would have suggested but it is still a good mystery with an enjoyable narrative and roundly good performances.