REVIEW: Martin Scorcese’s ‘Silence’ A Challenging Slog

Nerelle Harper 15 February 2017

At over two and a half hours, Martin Scorsese’s latest opus Silence is a punishing film to endure.

Though the director has delivered longer in his career (the three-hour-plus ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ for example), there’s a distinct lack of action presented in ‘Silence’ that gives the film an air of endlessness that is likely to challenge even the most devout of Scorsese fans. But I sense that’s the point.

Foregoing any desire to deliver entertainment, Scorsese wants to challenge his audience and make them question what they have seen; perhaps even hate their viewing experience. As for just what he is presenting, ‘Silence’ focuses on two 17th-century priests (Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver) who travel to Japan on a mission to find their former mentor (Liam Neeson), a priest who has denounced his own faith.

It’s a story ripe with possibilities, and with the amount of talent on board (both in front of and behind the camera) you’d be forgiven for assuming it would deliver, yet the final product frustrates the viewer into near-submission.

Whether or not you deem ‘Silence’ a good film rests solely on the individual experience that is this film. It can’t be denied that it’s well-made, but impressive statistics don’t necessarily equate to enjoyment. What one person can’t tolerate may stir another’s mind into reflection, and it’s through that distinct reaction that ‘Silence’ exists.