Seeking revenge as a result of being wronged is akin to a crime of passion: you're miffed at being mistreated, and so your rage takes over your mind before (or unless) cooler heads prevail. Seeking revenge as a result of profound loss, however, hews closer to pre-meditated obsession, the hole in your life slowly but surely filling up with a need for retribution until your life isn't for you and your loved ones anymore: it's all about getting payback.
Many action revenge thrillers explore this concept, and they generally feature characters who are already well-versed in the ways of killing. The theme of revenge becoming an all-consuming force, however, is best expressed with characters who used to be ordinary average folks before an enormous wrong or loss changes them forever, and not necessarily for the better. John Woo's latest action opus "Silent Night" — his first in Hollywood since 2003's...
Many action revenge thrillers explore this concept, and they generally feature characters who are already well-versed in the ways of killing. The theme of revenge becoming an all-consuming force, however, is best expressed with characters who used to be ordinary average folks before an enormous wrong or loss changes them forever, and not necessarily for the better. John Woo's latest action opus "Silent Night" — his first in Hollywood since 2003's...
- 12/1/2023
- by Bill Bria
- Slash Film
John Woo’s Silent Night is, in its content and form, about fulfilling a set goal through limited means. In the case of the former, this ethos is personified by Brian Godluck (Joel Kinnaman), who tries to make due with whatever he can get his hands on in order to seek bloody retribution for the death of his son amid gang crossfire. The latter, meanwhile, is rendered through the film’s near-total absence of dialogue, with Woo relying on the power of his images to convey what the spoken word is usually tasked with in commercial cinema.
As Brian lost his voice due to a throat injury sustained during the shooting that claimed his son’s life, the film’s story beats are largely articulated through visual means. One of Silent Night’s most impressive feats is the sound design that gives the film’s world a lived-in quality though an emphasis on small details,...
As Brian lost his voice due to a throat injury sustained during the shooting that claimed his son’s life, the film’s story beats are largely articulated through visual means. One of Silent Night’s most impressive feats is the sound design that gives the film’s world a lived-in quality though an emphasis on small details,...
- 11/27/2023
- by Paul Attard
- Slant Magazine
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