Speak No Evil Review

 

I saw Speak No Evil, here are my thoughts…

After meeting on vacation, a couple invites another couple to stay at their English cottage, and then things get awkward and dark, brought on by a kid who can’t speak and is acting weird…

Now this is one of those movies I can’t say much about. Part of the enjoyment comes from seeing how everything unfolds, so I recommend you go into this movie as blind as possible, but here are my basic thoughts…

So I would categorize this movie as a thriller. Still, a lot of the thrill doesn’t necessarily come from scares, but from awkward social situations (like a weird glance, uncomfortable comment, or overly insistent), so watching the movie feels as if "Curb Your Enthusiasm" was a horror movie. In the sense that, how that show explores comedy in mundane social situations, this one explores horror and thrills. It helps make the movie feel unique and stand out from other films in the genre.

James McAvoy is a beast in this movie, not just because he got jacked for the role, but while he comes off as fun-loving and charming, there’s underlining “aggressive with kindness” to everything he does, if that makes sense. Plus he’s almost guerrilla-like in his performance, like he’s always touching people and turning on a dime (although to his credit, he can turn quickly on a dime so you don’t see it coming), he’s one of my favorite actors working right now, because he’s always so committed and unpredictable in his roles.

I would say the whole cast does a great job. Mackenzie Davis, as strange as a comment this is, she really good at playing a mom. And by that I mean, she’s got to balance handling all the crazy stuff coming at her while also being protective and not freaking out her kid, and she rides that line very well, and comes off natural with a lot of good micro reactions to the situation she’s in. 

Also, she and her husband, played by Scoot McNairy, have a very natural “couple fight” in the film. You can tell they’re going through something and it’s rough, but they’re working on it. I’ve seen films where they really try to milk the drama out of those types of scenes, and I appreciated it feeling more underplayed, it helped it feel like a real argument couples have.

Now there are certain parts where red flags are waving, and you as the audience member thinking “Get Out!!! Run!!!”, it could be frustrating that the main characters don’t run for the hills and never look back. Now granted, they do explain why and give reasons, and while sometimes  I was slapping my forehead going “Really dude?!”, I understood where they were coming from, and as far as these “keep the plot going” excuses go… these were valid, or at least made more sense than some others I’ve seen, but that’s a mileage may vary situation.

Scoot McNairy gives a very subtle but good performance. His character is more reserved and is definitely going through an internal crisis, so while not as “showy” as some other performances, he does a lot of internal acting and subtle reactions that fit the character and make you sympathetic towards him… Now at some parts, you are definitely thinking “Why are you not reacting to these warning signs?” or “Why are you acting this way bro?”, but it’s more intentional than bad writing, so I’m able to roll with it.

I gotta give a lot of credit to the kid that plays the mute boy. He must be between 10 and 12 and I don’t know what kind of life this kid had but he is really good at conveying that this character has seen some shit in their life, and the fact that he’s able to draw such heavy emotions at such a young age is really impressive.

Aisling Franciosi who plays James McAvoy’s wife, had a very interesting role in the film. At first, she comes off as very like free loving and sweet, but as the film progresses, more information comes out, and they make insinuations about her and James McAvoy's past that get really dark and really add a lot of layers to her character that on paper is hard to pull off, but she does a really interesting job at portraying it, it keeps you guessing on what exactly her position in the whole situation is.

The actress that plays Mackenzie Davis and Scoot McNairy’s daughter has a lot of emotional scenes. Her characters deal with a lot of anxiety, which can be hard for any kid actors to convey, but she does a very convincing job, also, considering how much of it she has to show throughout the movie.

The movie has a very slow build, which is very well executed. It almost starts out as like a family drama/comedy, then the tension ratchets up slowly, eking in more and more and it gets really heavy. Then when some information drops, it gets really tense and nail-biting about what’s going to happen, and the filmmakers are really good about milking that. Finally, when things really pop off, you’re really on the edge of your seat wondering what’s gonna happen. 

The filmmaking, while nothing flashy, is very effective in its presentation. There are interesting ideas, like filming certain scenes  to make it feel like you're watching a “handheld slasher scene” for that subtle extra tension, the way editing cuts back and forth when people are having a disagreement, and certain parts in the middle where things are at their most stressed almost come off like an Alfred 

Hitchcock movie

In the third act, while things are definitely dire and intense, I appreciate how grounded and realistic things unfolded. 

I can’t say what they are, but there are two songs in this movie I gotta take a break from because boy this movie put a “Jordan Peele” type spin on them lol

So this movie is very much a tense thriller, there are interesting “dark comedy” bits, and how it explores social awkwardness is impressive, but at the end of the day it didn’t reinvent the wheel as far as thrillers go, and it didn’t have to. It it came, did its job (effectively I would add), and entertained, so it accomplished what it set out to do. So if thrillers aren’t your thing, this won’t change your mind, but if you’re looking for like a movie, that’s gonna give you surprises and a roller coaster feel on what’s going to happen, this is a great one to watch.

I give it four stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️