The Silence
Release date: 1998-09-06
Votes: 38
Genres: Drama, Music
Khorshid, a blind child growing up in Tajikistan, is constantly distracted by music and sounds. This frequently causes him to be late to his job as an instrument tuner even though he runs the risk of being fired at a time when his family is in danger of being evicted from their house.
Reviews
CRCulver
The director Mohsen Makhmalbaf made a number of acclaimed films in his native Iran over the Eighties and Nineties, but with the 1998 effort SOKOUT ("Silence") he moved farther afield for his shooting location: Tajikistan, where the locals speak a Persian dialect mostly intelligible to Iranians, but the culture is an exotic mix of Central Asian and Soviet traditions. Khorshid (Tahmineh Normatova), a blind boy aged around 10, is employed in the workshop of an instrument maker, tuning the instruments. His mother (Goibibi Ziadolahyeva), abandoned by her husband, urges him to work hard, for their landlord is demanding the rent and threatening eviction. Unfortunately, Khorshid is particularly prone to arriving late at work because he is easily distracted from his commute by the sound of music coming from the radio or street musicians. Nadereh (Nadereh Abdelahyeva), the adopted daughter of the instrument maker, tries to keep Khorshid out of trouble. This is a mystical film, by which Khorshid's desire to follow the beauty of music above all else serves as a metaphor for the renunciant's search for God. However, that mystical point is made quite subtly, and I suspect most audiences outside the region won't pick up on it. What will strike most foreign viewers is the beautiful imagery and soundtrack. Filming outside Iran in a country with less strict dress codes, Makhmalbaf's camera focuses heavily on female faces and the colourful floral prints of Dushabe's women. In Nadereh and another young cast member he captures that brief moment where girlhood gives way to womanhood. We hear a number of musical instruments from Central Asia, but besides the local folk music the dramatic opening of Beethoven's Fifth figures prominently, tying this exotic locale to a more universal ideal. Things are not entirely rosy, however. The innocence of the children is juxtaposed at a few points with the gritty reality of post-Soviet Tajikistan, now recovering from a bloody civil war and marked by poverty, child labour, and a reborn religious extremism. The running time is short at 72 minutes, which might disappoint some. Also, Makhmalbaf chose non-professionals to play the roles, and their lines are often delivered somewhat woodenly. However, such wooden dialog may have been desirable to the director, as that slow speech makes the film easier for his native Iranian audience to understand. Still, while not a major masterpiece, this is a visually and musically attractive film and worth watching for anyone wanting a slice of Central Asian drama (or at least one Iranian director's vision of it).
Movie Recommendation
20462004-10-20Women enter and exit a science fiction author's life over the course of a few years after the author loses the woman he considers his one true love.More...
Her Smell2019-04-12A self-destructive punk rocker struggles with sobriety while trying to recapture the creative inspiration that led her band to success.More...
Criminal Lovers1999-09-03After a perverted impulse drives them to kill, Alice and her boyfriend, Luc, drag the body into the woods, only to find themselves hopelessly lost – much like the fairy-tale plight of Hansel and Gretel. Starving and with no hope of being found, they chance upon a dilapidated cottage where a hulking man takes them prisoner and proceeds to feed Luc's sexual appetite.More...
Devilman - Volume 3: Devilman Apocalypse2000-05-24Fear runs rampant throughout Tokyo with the revelation that demons in fact exist amongst us. Paranoia and the darker side of humanity boils onto the streets as people turn on one another, suspecting that anyone could in fact be a demon hiding in human clothing. Amidst the growing tensions, tragedy strikes Akira causing his mind to snap, retreating into his subconscious, allowing his Devilish alter-ego Amon to break free from Akira's cage of flesh and wreak havoc on both human and demons alike.More...
The World Is Big and Salvation Lurks Around the Corner2008-03-14The story of Alex, who, with the help of his charismatic grandfather, embarks on a journey in search of his real self.More...
The Dust of Time2008-11-22A, an American film director of Greek ancestry, is making a film that tells his story and the story of his parents. It is a tale that unfolds in Italy, Germany, Russia, Kazakhstan, Canada and the USA. The main character is Eleni, who is claimed and claims the absoluteness of love. At the same time the film is a long journey into the vast history and the events of the last fifty years that left their mark on the 20th century. The characters in the film move as though in a dream. The dust of time confuses memories. A searches for them and experiences them in the present.More...
The Killing Game1967-04-29Two cartoonists meet a playboy who lives out the fantasies created in their cartoons. He hires them to create a new comic strip. As they work on the new strip, the playboy begins to live it out. Unfortunately, the new strip deals with murder.More...
The Spanish Apartment2002-06-19A strait-laced French student moves into an apartment in Barcelona with a cast of six other characters from all over Europe. Together, they speak the international language of love and friendship.More...
Joker2019-10-01During the 1980s, a failed stand-up comedian is driven insane and turns to a life of crime and chaos in Gotham City while becoming an infamous psychopathic crime figure.More...
Deadpool2016-02-09The origin story of former Special Forces operative turned mercenary Wade Wilson, who, after being subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopts the alter ego Deadpool. Armed with his new abilities and a dark, twisted sense of humor, Deadpool hunts down the man who nearly destroyed his life.More...
19172019-12-25At the height of the First World War, two young British soldiers must cross enemy territory and deliver a message that will stop a deadly attack on hundreds of soldiers.More...
Collateral Beauty2016-12-15Retreating from life after a tragedy, a man questions the universe by writing to Love, Time and Death. Receiving unexpected answers, he begins to see how these things interlock and how even loss can reveal moments of meaning and beauty.More...
Nocturnal Animals2016-11-04Susan Morrow receives a book manuscript from her ex-husband – a man she left 20 years earlier – asking for her opinion of his writing. As she reads, she is drawn into the fictional life of Tony Hastings, a mathematics professor whose family vacation turns violent.More...
Carol2015-11-20In 1950s New York, a department-store clerk who dreams of a better life falls for an older, married woman.More...
The Two Popes2019-11-27Frustrated with the direction of the church, Cardinal Bergoglio requests permission to retire in 2012 from Pope Benedict. Instead, facing scandal and self-doubt, the introspective Pope Benedict summons his harshest critic and future successor to Rome to reveal a secret that would shake the foundations of the Catholic Church.More...
Five2016-03-30A young man paying the rent for himself and his lifelong friends ends up flat-broke and resorts to selling marijuana to pay the bills – only to get caught up in the dangerous world of drugs.More...
Interstellar2014-11-05The adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.More...
Life Is Beautiful1997-12-20A touching story of an Italian book seller of Jewish ancestry who lives in his own little fairy tale. His creative and happy life would come to an abrupt halt when his entire family is deported to a concentration camp during World War II. While locked up he tries to convince his son that the whole thing is just a game.More...
Sully2016-09-07On 15 January 2009, the world witnessed the 'Miracle on the Hudson' when Captain 'Sully' Sullenberger glided his disabled plane onto the Hudson River, saving the lives of all 155 souls aboard. However, even as Sully was being heralded by the public and the media for his unprecedented feat of aviation skill, an investigation was unfolding that threatened to destroy his reputation and career.More...
Star Wars1977-05-25Princess Leia is captured and held hostage by the evil Imperial forces in their effort to take over the galactic Empire. Venturesome Luke Skywalker and dashing captain Han Solo team together with the loveable robot duo R2-D2 and C-3PO to rescue the beautiful princess and restore peace and justice in the Empire.More...
Similar Movies
My Old Dutch
1934-10-01Moving family drama of the life of a working-class Hackney couple over 40 years, inspired by the famous music hall song This moving family drama - with time for some laughs - portrays the life and hardships of a working class Hackney couple over a span of 40 years. Our intrepid couple (wonderfully played by Betty Balfour and Michael Hogan) have to face everything life throws at them with fortitude, from the Great War (a son in the RAF and zeppelin raids) to a raging oil fire during the Great Strike. The inimitable Gordon Harker provides sterling support. The film the couple watch at the cinema is the 1915 version of My Old Dutch, starring Albert Chevalier (writer of the original music hall song) and Florence Turner. As the complete silent film is now believed to be lost, this 1934 version contains the only surviving footage.Eles Não Usam Black-T...
2018-07-31There is no descriptionSita Sings the Blues
2008-02-11Utilizing the 1920s jazz vocals of Annette Hanshaw, the epic Indian tale of exiled prince Ramayana and his bride Sita is mirrored by a spurned woman's contemporary personal life, and light-hearted but knowledgeable discussion of historical background by a trio of Indian shadow puppets.Cantar ou Morrer 2
2024-02-20When it's leaked that the princess Yasmin killed a citizen of the kingdom over the no singing rule, her parents punish her and she is forced to live with the image she made for her family. Meanwhile Ingrid is trying to go back to her old life after being betrayed by the boy she loves. She makes frieds with Kevin, the prince of the kingdom, and his childhood best fried Alicia, and when a singing contest with a non identified prize is announced by the school she thinks of it as a way to honour her sister that passed away soon after her performance on the same contest many years ago.Wind, Talk to Me
2025-02-04Stefan reunites with his family to celebrate his grandmother's birthday for the first time after his mother's recent passing. This homecoming, driven by his urge to complete a film about his mother and an attempt to make amends by rescuing a stray dog, will ignite an introspective journey for Stefan. Inspired by the director's real-life experiences and starring his actual family members in a mission to complete a lake house and a film, this is an intimate cinematic exploration of the timeless mother-son relationship.The Present
No data for this movieTime is the ultimate thief...Blind in Love
2017-09-28Salim, a homicide detective, is a reclusive man in his 30s. Salim, who is divorced and has a 3-year-old daughter, learns that the eye treatment he has been undergoing for some time is not working and that he will eventually go completely blind. While trying to cope with this problem, he begins working on a new murder case, and the fact that the wife of the murdered man, Handan Hanım, is also a blind pianist makes Salim's situation even more interesting. As the case progresses, Salim falls deeply in love with Handan Hanım, but when she rejects him, he turns his attention to Leyla, the blind wife of the prime suspect in the murder. But undoubtedly the strangest thing is that Salim's beloved mother is an elderly, blind prostitute. As events unfold, Salim becomes even more blinded.Ge.hen'nah
No data for this movieA drama set in a small rural town in Lebanon about Yvette who is past 30, unmarried, devoutly religious and still living with her parents. Today, she is preparing to go to a retreat. It's a dream come true for her. However, as the bus approaches, a fight breaks out between her parents. She tries to intercede, but her father's rage is overwhelming. Is she able to calm her father and go to the trip? How far would you go to protect your mother?A World of Ours
2008-07-16Noé comes into sixth grade at the same time he discovers a new city and a new house where he has just moved with his father, Marc. Coached by him, Noé takes intensive training of combat sport. And Mark does not hesitate to put him in a situation of attack. They are in danger, he must be prepared to respond to any aggression. While keeping the secret of his "double" life, Noé has to learn how to find a place in his new college. He becomes friend with Marine, a young girl full of energy. Noé discovers a world whose vision was shaped by his father so far. A father so near and yet so mysterious. Between them there is a history of complicity and confrontation.Andragogy
2023-11-02A schoolteacher's reputation is at risk when a video of her speaking up against injustice goes viral on the internet and is misinterpreted.The Maginot Line
No data for this movieA very stressed young woman is dismayed to find herself behaving like her own mother, with whom she has an extremely combative relationship.The Jews Are Coming
1992-07-21In one Vojvodinian castle, the preparations for the play that will be performed by members of the Association of the blind are in the process. The play is dedicated to the Jews from America who are supposed to come and visit the place of their ancestor's massacre in 1942, during a raid in Novi Sad. The plot was to be carried out according to the original stories of witnesses who have gone through this tragic event. However, the initiators of the show manipulate the blind people in order to smuggle bombs for Albanian terrorists.Alo
2003-11-28The true love between a couple living in a village.Within Lies
2024-08-11Following a trail left by their enigmatic father, a courageous young girl, driven by the legend of the parent he idolizes, and his astute brother, determined to shield him from harsh truths, are reluctantly swept into a dangerous hunt for an ancient treasure. Together, they must navigate a path filled with danger and deception, forcing them to confront their family’s dark secrets while fighting to stay alive.it is now tomorrow
2025-06-26The different ways a single Vietnamese mother loved her three daughters comes to fruition when Junie, the middle child, reunites with her sisters in their childhood home on their mother’s death anniversary.The Painted Bird
2019-09-12After losing his parents, a young Jewish boy wanders Eastern Europe, seeking refuge during World War II.Bittersweet Rainbow
2021-01-01Nicolò, 24, returns home after 7 years. Through a path made of affections and memories his love story with Claudio and the reason for his escape will come back to him.Noise
2023-03-17Matt, an influencer and young parent to newborn Julius, discovers a dark secret from his dementing father's past. He starts an in-depth investigation, which consequently opens a Pandora's box of secrets and unravels more family dramas than anticipated. Matt's wife, Liv, is deeply concerned and will do everything in her power not to lose him, but is it too late..?Dilwale Dulhania Le J...
1995-10-20Raj is a rich, carefree, happy-go-lucky second generation NRI. Simran is the daughter of Chaudhary Baldev Singh, who in spite of being an NRI is very strict about adherence to Indian values. Simran has left for India to be married to her childhood fiancé. Raj leaves for India with a mission at his hands, to claim his lady love under the noses of her whole family. Thus begins a saga.American Fiction
2023-11-10A novelist fed up with the establishment profiting from "Black" entertainment uses a pen name to write a book that propels him into the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.