‘Silent Night’ disappoints with overused, cheap action shots

By Alana Frank

Theme Editor

The new holiday horror movie, “Silent Night,” attempts complex filming techniques but lacks a serious plot.

The film, directed by John Woo, follows a grieving father’s bloody quest for revenge on his son’s killer. The father, Brian Godlock, witnesses his son’s death in cross-fire between rivaling gangs on Christmas Day. After also receiving a bullet to the neck from his son’s killer, costing him his voice, Goldlock plans to avenge his son next Christmas.

“Silent Night,” as the name suggests, contains no dialogue. Instead, the story is told through the camera work, sound effects, and music. While the directors and actors were successful in communicating the plot through action, the movie feels lackluster and underdeveloped in certain parts. 

The movie follows a basic action movie plot complete with a tragic murder, long training montages, and an overwhelming amount of gunfights. While watching the movie, it is hard to take the film seriously due to the absence of conversation.

While the movie struggles to convey emotion through the script, Joel Kinnaman, who plays Godlock, is the highlight of the movie. Playing the role of a father dealing with the murder of his son without being able to talk is hard to pull off, but Kinnaman’s skillful acting covers up some of the plot holes of  this film.

However, the lack of dialogue only adds depth to Kinnaman’s character and doesn’t compensate for the lack of quality acting in other parts of the film. Godlock’s wife, played by Catalina Sandino Moreno, hopelessly tries to get through to her husband despite their grief, but her story is hard to follow without dialogue

Woo’s fancy camera tricks, harsh cuts, and slow motion shots make the fight scenes entertaining, but ultimately let down audiences with the lackluster ending. The overwhelming amount of gunshot sounds and splattered blood seem like a desperate and cheap attempt to keep viewers engaged. Additionally, the killer and members of the gang come off as fairly stereotypical, as if they were copied and pasted straight from Hollywood’s basic plot book.

“Silent Night” will be available for streaming on Amazon Prime on Dec. 22.