Dead Silence (Unrated Edition)

 

 

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Looking back on "Dead Silence," I find it appropriate that the movie opens with the old black and white Universal Studio logo from the 1930s. This film is a throwback to when horror films were much more subtle and used silence and shadow to generate their scares. As a film-goer who has long grown tired of horror films that rely almost solely on numerous "jump scares" where loud noises crash on the soundtrack for cheap frights, I appreciated that this film played fair and generally had a couple good creepy ideas. No one will ever mistake "Dead Silence" for art, the story can sometimes be very silly, and the twist that comes during the very final minute of the film doesn't hold up very well to logic. But, I also can't deny that the film is better than a lot of the stuff that's been passing for horror these days.

It is unfortunate that "Dead Silence" is being advertised as being "From the creators of Saw". While it is true that the films share the same director (James Wan) and screenwriter (Leigh Whannell), the two movies are as different as night and day. Gore hounds expecting a torture-filled bloodbath like the horror trilogy that made the filmmakers famous will be disappointed. This is an old fashioned-style supernatural thriller that relies almost entirely on atmosphere, mood and genuine suspense. The movie sets up some good scares by living up to the title. Instead of assaulting our ears with loud sound effects, the movie uses total silence to signal the coming of the vengeful spirit that is going on a murderous rampage. All sound around the potential victim strangely goes completely quiet, and we can only hear the rapid breathing of the person. It's an effective tool to generate suspense, and the movie uses it well. The town of Ravens Fair also has some suitably creepy locations. From dusty old performance hall theaters that hold secrets of the past to cemeteries that apparently come equipped with their own fog and smoke machines, it may all be clichéd but it's all used very well in the context of the film itself.

Like a lot of movies of its type, "Dead Silence" loses most of its charm once the answers start coming and the mysteries start to get unraveled. Likewise, the twist that pops up literally during the last minute will certainly leave some viewers feeling either confused or just plain angry. While it's certainly unexpected, it seems forced, almost as if the filmmakers didn't want their movie to end on a high note, so they intentionally threw this last minute revelation in so that they could end the story on a more "ominous" note. Up until that point, "Dead Silence" is a mostly successful and entertaining little ghostly yarn that does what it's supposed to. It unnerves us and holds our attention just enough to make us want to see the thing to the end, no matter how silly it may sometimes seem.

"Dead Silence" is not an entirely successful venture, but it does do a lot of things right, and it at least proves that the minds behind the Saw franchise are willing to try something different and explore other forms of horror. You go to a movie like this to be entertained and creeped out, and it delivers just enough for the film to work. How you view this movie will most likely depend on the kind of horror you enjoy. I have a feeling that adults looking for a subtle and creepy tale will be more entertained than teens looking for a scream-fest to take their girlfriends to. There's certainly nothing wrong with that, though I sincerely hope the studio doesn't try to franchise the hell out of the picture like the Saw films. This works well enough as a stand-alone film, and should remain as such.

A by the numbers horror film that makes little sense, Dead Silence nonetheless makes for fairly entertaining genre fare. Donnie Wahlberg hams it up in entertaining style as a private eye investigating murders in a small town, while the lead, whose wife is killed (apparently by a puppet) delivers a fine performance. As good as those two actors are, it's hard to get over the cheesiness, especially the shots of the dolls with moving eyes. The problem is this movie tries to play it serious with an absolutely ludicrous concept. Some genuinely chilling scenes and a schocking twist ending prevent it from being a dud. Worth a try but only for horror film fans.

Beware the stare of Mary Shaw
She had no children only dolls
And if you see her in your dreams
Be sure to never ever scream.

One day Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten) gets this package with a ventriloquist's dummy named Billy and by the time he gets back from having gone out he finds his wife, Lisa (Laura Regan), is dead. Not only is she dead, but she is missing her tongue. If you can connect the dots between Lisa's death and the above rhyme then you can tell where "Dead Silence" is going. Jamie brings Laura back to their hometown of Ravens Fair, even though that means seeing his father, Edward Ashen (Bob Gunton) and his latest trophy wife, Ella (Amber Valletta). Tagging along is Detective Jim Lipton (Donnie Wahlberg), who thinks Jamie is the primary suspect in his wife's death and wants to keep an eye on him. Meanwhile, Jamie is trying to find out more about this whole Mary Shaw think from Henry Walker (Michael Fairman), the local undertaker.

"Dead Silence" is made by director James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell, the same team that came up with the Saw Trilogy. It came out in March of this year, although I do not remember hearing about it and doubt that it made it to this neck of the woods. I happened to see "Dead Silence" the same day I saw a wretched rip-off of "Saw," so to see a horror film that actually looked good was quite refreshing and I was rather encouraged. However, this is probably not the first horror story you have seen involving a ventriloquist's dummy and style can only take you so far in this genre.

The problem is connecting to the story and I think this film starts to get off track when they try to rhyme "Shaw" with "dolls." I mean, I have no problem with scant rhyme, but this is not even close to being in the ballpark. After the death of his wife, Jamie is the prime suspect in the mind of Detective Lipton (a nod to Wahlberg's role in "Band of Brothers"?), but in the day and age of what is called "The C.S.I. Effect," it should be obvious that Jamie did not do it. He might have hired somebody to do it, but clearly the blood on him would have come from finding his wife dead, as he claims, and not from being there when she was being murdered. So I was starting to disconnect from the story at that point, especially since Lipton is required to given Jamie enough rope to hang himself, which, of course, he uses instead to discover the horrible truth.

Beyond the nice production values here, the best part of this movie is Judith Roberts as Mary Shaw when we finally get to go back to the past and see her do her act. I am not sure if her big line is really that much better than the rhyme they come up with for Mary Shaw, but damn, Roberts knows how to deliver it for what might be the best chill in the whole movie. But by the time you get to the film's end game you just are not invested in the outcome. This is one of those films where they do a nice job of setting up the reveal at the end, which is certainly not surprising with Wan and Whannell involved, but I find it difficult to muster much enthusiasm for it. All things considered, "Dead Silence" does this type of horror film by the numbers, but it just does not add up to a "must see" film for fans. I do not think that you will be bitterly disappointed if you check it out. I just think you not end up being as impressed as you think you should be.

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