Dead Silence

I thought the age of the horror movie was coming to an end. Occasionally there are a few gems (The Descent was excellent)but for the most part horror has been replaced by torture porn (saw, saw 2, saw 3, The Hills Have Eyes, and especially Hostel). Dead Silence has thankfully come to show us that Hollywood can still make a scary picture.

This movie is a throwback to the golden age of horror films. This is a Williams Castle sort of movie... a Vincent Price sort of movie. The filmmakers realized that all a horror movie actually has to do is be scary... and that is exactly what this movie is.

Atmosphere, jumps, startles, and eerie dolls. This movie is creepy as hell.

A little note though... don't go into this film with the attitude that it will suck... and don't pick it apart bit by bit. Just sit back and enjoy. The movie wants to to take you on a ride. You should just strap in and feel the terror that is Dead Silence.

After watching the first few Saw movies, I kept thinking to myself that doll was creepy enough to have a horror movie based on itself and a few years later I found this gem and I have been revisiting it over the years since. Its 2019, and I just rewatched it again a few nights back with a friend and it was an entertaining ride.

The movie itself isn't any kind of a masterpiece. The acting, writing and plot are all rather average but there is some effective horror atmosphere and effects packed in and while the plot is nothing original or fresh its played straight in way that will keep you interested. Its a breezy movie that you can watch and enjoy with a roommate late night.

"Dead Silence" is a movie that I had been highly anticipating ever since I saw the trailer for it. I just got back from seeing it and I wasn't disappointed at all. The film follows Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten), who, after receiving a mysterious puppet, returns home to find his wife, Lisa (Laura Regan) murdered. With a detective (Donnie Wahlberg) convinced he is the murderer, Jamie returns to his childhood town of Raven's Fair, where a legendary ghost story is told. The story is about a woman named Mary Shaw, a ventriloquist who was murdered after being suspected of murder. She was buried with her massive amount of dolls and puppets as well. After her death, it seems she has been taking revenge on the townspeople, when numerous families are found dead with their tongues missing. Jamie takes it upon himself to solve the legend and curse before he becomes the next victim.

Directed/co-written by James Wan and written by Leigh Whannell, the men who brought us the successful "Saw" series, are also behind this splendidly spooky horror film. Originality is a hard thing to find in the horror genre these days, but this film manages to sluff off most of the typical horror set-ups and create an interesting and compelling story. This is quite a turn around from the "Saw" franchise, which, while it is a good series, has become more of a gore fest than anything. On the other hand, "Dead Silence" is a supernatural horror film with a very well written story. Character development is strong, and the acting helps that out as well, which is always a plus. Ryan Kwanten, an Australian actor, plays the lead role and is very believable. Donnie Wahlberg (of "Saw II" and "Saw III") plays a skeptical detective, and Amber Valetta ("What Lies Beneath") plays Jamie's new stepmother. All of the acting was really believable, I didn't see any below-average performing here.

Puppets and ventriloquism are main themes in the plot, which might sound a little clichéd. I suppose it is, puppets and dolls have become almost a joke in the genre because they are so over-used (as well as creepy little children, among other things), but since they are in the core basis of the plot, they actually come off as being scary. People who have that fear of dolls and/or puppets would be advised to steer clear of this film. There is some great sets in the film as well. The entire town of Raven's Fair has a heavily Gothic tone to it, almost to the point of complete surrealism. The sets are spooky and appropriately so, because it really adds the atmosphere of the movie. The villain/ghostly ventriloquist Mary Shaw, was actually quite terrifying. Her makeup effects made her one creepy looking woman. As for the gore, those expecting anything close to the over-abundance of violence in the "Saw" films will be disappointed. This film doesn't contain much gore - it has a little, but it doesn't use typical violence and graphic gore to get some scares out of the audience. I loved the way the movie ended as well. It's a twist-ending, but don't let that put you off - it works well with the rest of the movie, it's not one of those "bad movie twists". It was very unexpected and very well-written.

Overall, "Dead Silence" is a refreshing, semi-unique horror movie. The storyline is original enough, and the creepy themes and atmospheric setting add to its overall effect. Don't expect a gore fest though, because the violence is pretty tame compared to what you'd see in the "Saw" films. If you like James Wan and Leigh Whannell's work, I'd really recommend seeing this - it's a pleasant change from your typical horror films, and a nice change of pace from their previous work. It has a few flaws here and there, but it's such an enjoyable movie that all of that is forgivable in the end. Very refreshing. 9/10.

Okay let me start off by stating that this isn't the greatest horror movie or amazing by any means. But I think it's underrated or not given enough credit. For a film that is 15 years old it holds up pretty well except for the CGI and the plot isn't great. Dead silence is a film about the curse of Mary Shaw, where if you scream she'll kill you (I don't want to spoil much so I won't say to much) and she targets Jamie ashen, and Jamie must find out why she is targeting him by going back to his old home ravensfair to uncover the secret. The plots pretty simple and nothing crazy, but where this movie shines is it's atmosphere, Cinematography, acting, soundtrack and tense slow build scary moments. Now there still are jumpscares in this but there's also lots of slower intense moments and very disturbing parts which makes it way scarier to me rather than having constant loud jumpscares that are mainly scary because of the loud sound, and again this movie does have one or 2 but there's way more creepy moments that will have you at the edge of your seat or creeped out. The shots are also done very well and the transitions are awesome. The soundtrack is definitely memorable and fits the movie well. The acting is decent enough and I think the flashback scene in the theatre is one of my favourite scenes in the movie for its tone and the acting of judith Anna roberts, genuinely creepy scene. The film style/look is a bit dark and colourless which fits perfectly for such a dark movie like this. And the ending will definitely surprise you! Overall it's a pretty decent movie that is worth the watch if you haven't seen it already. It gets a 7/10 from me, I came in not expecting something good but I was surprised and creeped out. I can agree with people who do give it 6. It's understandable for those who thought the plot was boring. I think this movie could've been better if it was 2-2.5 hours to expand on the characters and the story and backstory. I hope one day they revisit this series and make a sequel or remake that it deserves.

If you have nightmares easily, I suggest staying away from this film: it's pure nightmare fuel. If you have an active imagination, you could have trouble sleeping with the film's imagery burned into the back of your eyeballs.

The story's intriguing enough. There just aren't enough horror films these days about menacing old ventriloquist ladies that are buried with their creepy dolls, who have come back from the dead to seek vengeance on the families that put her in the grave, by tearing out their tongues. The atmosphere is heavy, the creepy music is provided by SAW'S Charlie Clouser, the colors are washed out, and the sets are surreal.

Many will dismiss it as a formulaic, clichéd horror film. The SAW creators, who are huge horror fans, have fun making their own version of the American horror film by throwing in plenty of classic tropes such as the wise-cracking detective (Donnie Wahlberg) and the crazy old lady that knows more than she should.

I was pleased that the film didn't shy away from gore: it wasn't gratuitous, but it did enhance the horror. Most ghost stories tend to be separate from the gore flicks (I'm a fan of both), but I always enjoy seeing them combined. Another aspect that was interesting was the "silence" mode that signaled the presence of evil.

It's got plenty of horror elements to provide scares: aged film, folk tales, singing children, antique furniture, voice recordings fading out, flickering lights, dead loved ones beckoning from beyond the grave, photographs of dead families, cackling old women, wide-eyed dolls, billowing curtains, plenty of thunder and lightning, open caskets, dank crawlspaces, and a pervading sense of evil throughout.

Critics won't dig it, but I've shown it to two groups of friends and the majority were terrified and claimed it to be one of the scariest movies they'd seen. If you're a fan of atmospheric horror that aims to creep you to the bone, you should be more than pleased.