Formula: (The Last Temptation of Christ * Unbroken) / The Last Samurai
Silence tells the story of two Portugese priests, Father Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) and Father Garrpe (Adam Driver), who go to Japan in 1641 to discover the whereabouts of another missionary, Father Ferreira (Liam Neeson), who hasn't been heard from in a very long time. In recent years, Japan has started torturing and killing Catholic converts as well as the priests doing missionary work there, so this is a dangerous mission. After worshiping with some faith-starved villages for a while, the two priests split up in search of Ferreira. Rodrigues is eventually caught by the Inquisitor, a local officer in charge of finding the Christians in Japan, who attempts to break Rodrigues' spirit.
There are many films I want to compare this to. Unbroken has the same Job-esque trials and tribulations. The Last Samurai is also about a visitor to Japan being held captive by the enemy. The Last Temptation of Christ depicts the challenges of keeping one's faith in times of strife. All of these are fair comparisons, but Silence is its own beast entirely. It's the rare movie that goes over 2 and a half hours that I couldn't imagine being any shorter. Some of Scorsese's past films - cough The Wolf of Wall Street cough - could've lost a half hour and barely impacted the final product. Silence needs every minute so the audience can soak it in. This isn't an exciting film or very driven by plot. It's repetitive, as Garfield's character is put through the ringer, so to speak, to have his faith tested. I'm still working on what I'm supposed to take away from it all. While I don't have faith myself, it argues well for the strength it can have, especially when all else is lost. You believe why these people would go through such hell for it.
Andrew Garfield, who already impressed me earlier in the season in Hacksaw Ridge, gives a superior performance as Father Rodrigues. He plays many emotions while always stopping just short of hysterics, which is easier said than done. Rodrigues seems to almost be jealous of the locals who are able to die for their beliefs. He instead must suffer mentally as others die in his stead. Driver and Neeson both have fairly minor roles. It's nice to get familiar faces for those roles though, especially Neeson, whose casting automatically imbues his character with several more shades than is there in the script. I've heard Issei Ogata's performance as the Inquisitor called a Japanese version of Christoph Waltz's in Inglourious Basterds. That's not far off. The Inquisitor, Inoue, is less cruel for the fun of it. He has a different understanding of Christianity than the priests and refuses to be proven wrong. His and Rodrigues' occasional conversations are interesting battles of wits.
Simply put, the film is pretty. It seems like Scorsese is finding an excuse for every kind of shot he can think of but not necessarily showing off. He takes advantage of the Tawainese setting (a reasonable stand-in for Japan) in several locations. It's no surprise that he recreates 1600s Japan in a way that looks authentic and lived-in. The "below the line" work in this is top notch (Cinematography, costumes, production design).
Silence is not a film that will appeal to many people. It's purposely tough to watch and plays out at a measured pace. This isn't Scorsese's best movie, but it may be one of the most valuable to understand him as a filmmaker. He's made something very personal at a very high level. I commend that even if I didn't connect to it emotionally much.
Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend
No comments:
Post a Comment