Silent River
A man goes into the desert, and checks into a hotel. His purpose? To get away from some parts of his life, but he also looks to reconnect with others. At the hotel, he finds himself confronted by some unusual circumstances, including meeting a woman who happens to look like his wife, with a mysterious box. “Silent River” has a lot of ideas in it, some of which need a chance to marinate. That’s never a bad thing; that’s not always a great thing, however.
Elliot (West Liang) isn’t your typical drifter. He has a reason for his actions- his business has gone under, so he’s being hounded by workers hoping to get paid, and he’s trying to reconnect with his wife, Julie (Amy Tsang). While at the hotel, Greta (also Tsang) checks into the room next to him; she bears a striking resemblance to Julie, and has an unusual travel guest with her. Is this all happening, or is Elliot imagining this?
Whenever writer-director Chris Chan Lee gives us a glimpse of the sky, what strikes us is how otherworldly it seems. The skyline doesn’t seem normal, and indeed, there are times when we are led to believe this landscape has more going on that just hills and desert plains. Greta’s traveling companion, P2 (Max Faugno), is an artificial intelligence whom Elliot seems to recognize, but if Greta is not Julie, how can he recognize P2? This is a different sort of combination of science fiction and film noir than we’re used to; normally, what we get are films such as “Dark City” and “Blade Runner,” which take the structure, and emphasize the dark visuals of the genre. Here, Greta feels like a film noir, and the film relishes its bright landscapes. In a way, that only makes the film feel more accurate to the genre, which always was at its best when it illuminated the dark truths of society.
Unfortunately, “Silent River” doesn’t really land its narrative in a way that connected with me. I love the visuals and music, there are some beautiful moments- such as when Greta and P2 share a bath together- but Elliot’s story felt unsettled by the end. Not unsettled as in we’re left shaken by the direction it goes, but incomplete, in a way. In an attempt to pull several rugs out from under us, I feel like it’s done one too many, without given us a sense of what we’re supposed to think or feel. Elliot is still adrift, but it almost feels as though the film is, as well. Marinating on “Silent River” is beneficial to a point, but we might also think there’s still more that should have been said before the credits roll.
