If one of my favorite directors has a new film coming out, I make sure to look out for it. Silence was a project I knew about for a while that seemed to never be moving forward. Going into 2016, I remember wondering if the movie was ever going to come out. A release date was officially set until earlier this fall and the trailer didn’t come out until the first few weeks of December. My initial thoughts after reading the premise and seeing the trailer got me excited. However, as I thought about it more and saw it had a 2 hour 41 minute run time I worried it would be extremely well-made but stagnant and boring movie. If Scorsese hadn’t been directing, my expectations would have been lowered significantly. After reading Martin Scorsese: A Retrospective, which I just posted a review for, my anticipation grew again finding out about his religious background and emotional attachment to a project like this.

     Right off the bat, Silence is a very slow-paced film that doesn’t build up to the typical climactic third act. That being said, just because it’s a slow burn, doesn’t mean it’s a bad film. I actually really enjoyed the movie and put it amongst my favorites of the year. I’m simply trying to get the point across that you need to know what you’re getting into before you see it. It isn’t a spectacle type of film.

     What I really appreciated about this movie was how Scorsese was able to separate himself from this story. What I mean by that is that you can’t tell that he’s the one behind the camera. When you normally think of Scorsese, you think of gangsters, violence, and fast cuts. Fortunately, Scorsese realized that in order to stay true to the original novel, he had to restrain himself from imputing classic tropes of his. To me, it proves not only how mindful of a director he is but also the respect he has for the material he takes on. 

    Even though Silence is a very reserved film, it still plays out like an epic. The 2 hour 41 minute run time can definitely be felt by the end but the rest is so good that it makes up for that. All in all, the long run time helps it in my opinion. It really lets the story develop over time and helps reflect the amazingly long journey of these two Jesuit priests. The fact that Scorsese chose to let the story unfold gradually made the whole thing, especially the more eventful parts, feel that much more earned and important. I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite Scorsese film but it deserves the label of being his best directed one. With Silence, he takes such dense material and so successfully transfers it to the big screen.

     From a technical side, the cinematography is beautiful. I could have watched another hour just to see all the landscapes and imagery of Japan. Another part I liked, was the way the voice over narration is done in the movie. Each narrators’ voice seems to have some kind of filter on it to make it sound almost god-like.

     I think the main reason why this movie resonated with me was because of the message it conveys. It’s something you have to have time to think about and process after you leave the theatre. Once you do, the film gets that much better. Silence doesn’t take sides on whether the Japanese persecutors or Jesuit missionaries are the bad guy. It points out the flaws in each of them and leaves the line between right and wrong very ambiguous. The dialogue is what helps these themes have so much relevance in the context of the story. The film uses a lot of strung out conversations with smart comparisons and metaphors that add a layer of depth to the things that unfold on screen.

    You can tell that Silence was Scorsese’s passion project. Technically, it’s pretty much flawless. The only downside is that it’s definitely a very slow film. On the other hand, I think that’s how this material needed to be treated. It’s not perfect and it isn’t my favorite Scorsese flick but it’s a strong addition to his filmography. It makes you think and engrosses you in these two priests’ religious quest to 17th century Japan. I give it 9/10.