3+1 Short Paragraphs: The Silence

2019, John R. Leonetti (Annabelle) -- Netflix

If there are so many movies popping up that are part of  the Great Chinese Film Industry, Skyscraper and  The Meg for example, that are built to provide American style actioners to the Chinese audience, but with an over-arching influence of the backing producers, then what the heck is Constantin Films from Germany trying to do? You cannot say this movie, or many of their movies old and new, are "German movies" despite wikipedia's description as such. There is no agenda here, no desire for German culture to be part of the movie, nor any aspect of its creation about creating a movie for a German after market. No, this is just a straight Hollywood movie, a horror-light flick made quickly and unremarkably to draw in the Netflix audience. Unless, as we cannot forget Uwe Boll and his desire to create movies solely for the inflight experience, that is the German influence -- expediency, thrift and unadorned focus.

The Silence may be called the rip-off of the The Quiet Place, but like the other Netflix based horror-light movie (or monster flick) Bird Box it was based on a book. And where The Quiet Place was about setting a tone, a mood, a world where the characters have to stay silent to fend off the mysterious monsters, this movie has no such conceit. This movie is about showing you the monster immediately, tossing the main characters into the fray right away and then just moving them along.

The problem is that it never really moves them along to any particular direction or reason. This is like a chapter in someone else's story. The Andrews, primarily dad Stanley Tucci (Easy A) and daughter Kiernan Shipka (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) are escaping the introduction of flying lizard like monsters that are attracted to sound and are basically pop culture piranha on wings. There is no attempt by the movie to explain why the military, or even some inventive good old boys in riot gear & flame throwers, cannot deal with this catastrophe. Sure, they breed quickly but come on, even a bear suit and a pitchfork would do. Anywayz, they escape on their way... somewhere and are confronted by a cult that has only taken days to form, one that cuts out their tongues (you know, you can still make a lot of noise without tongues) and sacrifices people for The Greater Silence. Let's toss in a requisite, they are trying to Make America Quiet Again. Anywayz, the Andrews meet them, lose some family and then... well, are on their way again.

And that's it. That is IT. Sure the acting is decent, as Tucci can be in anything these days. And the movie looks good, nothing special but capable. And... oh yeah, that was my first point. German production: capable and entertaining, just lacking any real substance.