Full disclosure: I am not a huge fan of John Woo's films. I find his work stylish but often vapid. Silent Night seems to cross a line though. It actually seems full of some pretty awful story telling. It's clumsily crafted and doesn't make up for it in its action sequences, the one strength the film has.
For a film that is supposed to not have any dialogue Silent Night has a shit tonne of dialogue. It makes its main character mute but has so many other characters say things, we hear the radio announce many details, and there are plenty of text conversations. Commit to your gimmick Woo. Either this is a "silent" movie or it's not.
But the way he does limit the dialogue feels forced and awkward most of the time. There are moments that are just begging for someone to say something that feel unrealistic without people talking. You just never believe in the silent moments. This year another film tried this trick with much greater success. No One Will Save You showed you how this should be done. Silent Night falls far short.
The film is a slow burn... well perhaps more a slog. Even with its 104 minute runtime it feels long. It takes so long for Kinnaman's character to build up to his rampage and it's just not interesting. We watch him descend into violence, first losing his son, then his wife, and all of this should have some emotional impact but Woo isn't able to build that so it all just feels toxic. And when he finally gets to the point of the movie, it becomes an incel fantasy. One white man with a gun is able to do what society, what the police, cannot do. The film is filled with gang members ready to be taken down by our white night and yes they are all Latinx. The film doesn't hide its biases, even using some of its cheating dialogue to highlight the films xenophobia.
But if there is anything Woo can do it's kick ass action, right? Well... this part is the certainly the best part of the movie but I could list a number of 2023 films which eclipse it for out right amazing action without having to think to far. Has Woo lost his mojo?
The things I will give the film credit for are Kinnaman's performance and the film not letting his character off the hook. As much as the film tries to make him a hero, he is a tragic figure, destroyed by his rage and his quest for vengeance. It certainly has the ending it should. Kinnaman doesn't portray his character as John Wick. He is panicked most of the time, makes so many mistakes. This keeps the movie from being a complete disappointment.
But it's still just not that entertaining and that's the most disappointing part of all. Silent Night is more a lump of coal than holiday favourite.
Silent Night
Starring: Joel Kinnaman, Scott Mescudi
Director: John Woo
Writer: Robert Archer Lynn
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