Silence

What an utter waste of 2 hours and 40 minutes of my life. The story crawls along at a snail's pace, and accomplishes nothing. The characters are wholy uninteresting. This is a fine example of how people will praise garbage solely for whose name is on the garbage.

Amazing!

Made me wonder what I would do were the same choice mine...Faith is easy to speak of when we are comfortable and under no threat, but, when faced with an ultimate test, could we say the sme things, or be silent about it...

One of Scorsese’s best. Opens your eyes to true faith.

If you want to be entertained for a single night then this film isn’t for you. This piece of art goes beyond that. “Silence” embarks you on a meditative and seat gripping pilgrimage that, if you have an open mind for, can change your life. No matter what faith you are (I am a Muslim), this story (based on a true story) can challenge you, elevate you, and destroy you. If I had to sum up this film in a single word, it would be “Powerful”.

“Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers. And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other. And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:9-13

Wicked message. wretched film

A metaphysical and cerebral movie that is long and profound and not for the casual movie goer. It explores the spiritual and intellectual aspects of personal belief and it’s existential nature while the protagonists are undergoing persecution and both psychological and physical torture. The Inquisitor believes he has triumphed but fails to comprehend that while you can kill a man an idea cannot be expunged because it resides in the impregnable fortress that is the human mind.

Before writing this review I took a look at some of the other comments here on iTunes. You can tell a lot about the personal/spiritual baggage some are carrying in the negative comments. I found this film to be very unique and beautiful. I don't see this film as pro-Christian/Catholic or anti-Christian/Catholic, pro-Buddhism or anti-Buddhism, pro-West or anti-West, pro-Japanese or anti-Japanese. I wouldn't even describe this film as "religious" or "faith-based" in genre. In essence I find this an amazing film about the fears, misunderstandings and unfortunate tragedies that took place between two well-meaning cultures. Both the Catholic missionaries and the Japanese leadership of this time thought they were doing the right thing. But yet they both failed to truly understand one other. There are many levels of this film to contemplate if one is so inclined. This is a contemplative film and will be appreciated by those who are open to a unique thought provoking experience.

Fitting name! Thats the same sound my TV made after I turned this off. Very disappointing. I normally swear by Scorcese, but I just didnt care about any of the characters. None of them are a strong enough or charismatic enough of a lead to make this slow story at least compelling.