Speak No Evil - 2022
Updated: Nov 18, 2022
This review may contain spoilers.
As close friends recently told me as I was just spitballing about my gut-level reactions immediately after viewing Speak No Evil, moral outrage is an intriguing side for me. As a general rule, I am pretty vehemently against censorship of artistic expression. To me, that seems tantamount to a revocation of freedom. Despite my efforts, however, I left this film enraged. Yet as I've given myself some space and time to reflect, I'm beginning to think this was precisely the directorial intent.
I believe that the setup in this picture is rather remarkable. It is essentially a kind of cross-cultural satire, which explores the idiosyncrasies of different mores and then conflates them with actual boundary-pushing behavior. But Speak's REAL goods are when it steps beyond these things and cuts razor-sharp into "niceties" and interpersonal pleasantries.
For all this to work, the tone of the film must be exquisite. Fortunately for the viewer, it truly is here. The score is sparse but haunting and unnerving. The four lead performances are all exquisite. Each is well-written, to be sure, but they are also brought to life with such delicacy. Bjorn (played by Morten Burian) is the calm and centered family man, who has just gotten a little tired of the hamster wheel of his life. When we meet him, he has completely submerged his id under his superego. By contrast, Patrick (Fedja van Huet) is a kind of brigand. At first, giving the air of high class charm, he soon shows his true colors as a primal, parasitic pig.
The ladies are even more nuanced in how they are sketched. In some ways, Karin is the most blank canvas, acting more as a peacekeeper and faithful sidekick than a force of nature in her own right. Nevertheless, she does flash sides of a free spirit and can turn the most chilling dead eye stare in a moment's notice. My favorite performance, however, is Sidsel Siem Koch's Louise, for she is the most fully drawn. Her convictions and boundaries are firmest, and she's willing to express herself emphatically, even at the risk of exposing Bjorn as a kind of cuck in the proceedings.
In any case, (as I've said) at first as this all came together, I was infuriated. My general rule of thumb in films is you don't fuck with kids. Even Jesus said it, guys. Leave them alone. But the bigger issue I initially had was the utter nihilism of it all. In other words, where does all this leave us? What is the point of the torment and kid-swapping? Without these things, I reasoned, we're left with a neat package - a kind of multicultural thriller sending up the air of mannerdom - but never really landing with any deeper payoffs. Upon further reflection, I believe I am beginning to find a thread. The key, I think, lies in one of Patrick's last lines. Bjorn, now naked and fully exposed (as symbolically meaningful as it is physical), asks Patrick the question we all want to know: Why? Patrick's response is simple and profound all at once - "Because you let me."
At the last, THIS seems to be at the heart of what Christian Tafdrup is getting at in Speak No Evil. Put tersely, boundaries are important! Stick to your guns. Stand firm in your convictions. When you sense something is awry, speak out! Do not allow others to walk all over you, or waste your time and energy. The corollary the couple hints at is no less significant - To do these things is to live less than fully. Because Bjorn's inner desires were never given outward expression, he allowed Patrick and Karin to take his family on the most horrific ride possible. Presumably had they actually sped away on that dawn morning, things would have turned out differently. Alas, it was not to be.
So, where do I now stand? I've calmed some. Though for the pain caused to that little girl, I'm still seething. I stand conflicted, but recognize the impressive qualities I have beheld. Champions of the film will find it Haneke-adjacent, detractors a mere facsimile. I am begrudgingly walking closer to the former camp as my reflections deepen. In other words, in ratings-speak, this is probably a four star film. I just don't have the chutzpah to put it there when I'm so pissed off about all that took place.
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