Silence is golden

With Martin Scorsese’s masterful and epic Silence, you embrace all of it from the opening when the imperious sounds of nature on a black screen falls silent, until it greets you at the end of a soul-shattering journey.

Silence is a labour of consummate passion that tells the story of two 17th century Portuguese missionaries who undertake a perilous journey to Japan to search for their missing mentor at a time when feudal lords and ruling samurai were determined to eradicate Christianity in their midst; Christians were persecuted and tortured, forced to apostatise, that is, renounce their faith or face a prolonged and agonising death.

Examining God’s silence

Based on Shusaku Endo’s 1966 award-winning novel, it faithfully examines the spiritual and religious question of God’s silence in the face of human suffering, with a brilliant screenplay by Scorsese and Jay Cocks. Andrew Garfield delivers one of the most powerful performances of his career as Father Rodrigues and will break your heart with his impassioned journey into the soul of a man whose belief is tested to the extreme. Equally brilliant is Adam Driver as Rodrigues’s fellow priest, and Liam Neeson adds authority as the all-important Father Ferreria.

Also unforgettable is Tadanobu Asano as the wily and treacherous interpreter who walks a frightening path between devout Christian villagers and their samurai tormentors.

Cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto perfectly captures 17th century Japan, particularly the emotional landscape of the characters, allowing us to feel their anguish, desolation and torment, exquisitely contrasted by the lushness of the rural landscape, complimented by Dante Ferretti’s magnificent production and costume designs. Editor Thelma Schoonmaker allows us to feel the heartbeat of the story as she captures the serenity of isolation as well as the severity of Mother Nature with storming seas and a torrential downpour of rain. Underscoring the tender emotional impact is the musical score by Kim Allen Kluge and Kathryn Kluge.

Eye-opening odyssey

Silence is a must-see and eye-opening odyssey into humanity that has never been more relevant than today, where people still contemplate faith and doubt, weakness, and the human condition.

It is impossible to fully understand or explain the solitude of our souls, those moments when we take a journey into the essence of ourselves.

With Silence, Scorsese poignantly shows that it is those silent, meditative moments that shape our humanity and respective destinies, and how important it is to respect and revere the differences that cause conflict and torment.

Silence is most definitely a rewarding and meaningful cinematic experience, and equally important for those who feel lost in their lives and need to be reminded of how fragile the human condition is when darkness descends.

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