-Written by Kyle Bain.
Screaming Silence is a brilliantly mysterious tale of a young woman. She’s experienced something horrific, but we aren’t sure what it is, when it happened, or how it will affect her going forward. This woman, Elizabeth (Kalyn Elizabeth Wood), suffers in silence–attempting to deal with the aftermath of this horrific event. Only time will tell what has happened or how she will deal with it.
A short film driven almost entirely by the sound design, almost completely void of dialogue, viewers are left to fend for themselves, attempting to uncover the truth about what has transpired in Elizabeth’s life. Sure, we are given some context through the visuals, and we are ultimately able to work out what has happened, but it takes some time before we are given legitimate, tangible evidence as to what has occurred. The sound design creates a devastatingly dark tone that exists throughout the course of Screaming Silence. That heavy tone never subsides, never becomes anything less intense, not even as the credits roll. The use of simplistic, everyday sounds is what draws the audience into the film, grabbing them tightly, and refusing to let go.
The simple use of sound reminds us of our own lives, reminds us of the things that we have experienced–providing something of a visceral reaction to Elizabeth’s mystery predicament. The truth is that we don’t need to know what she’s gone through, just that something bad has happened. That’s really enough for us to connect with her, to become intrigued by the narrative. Screaming Silence does take it a step further and presents to us clear evidence of what has happened (again, later in the film), but the strength of the sound design truly is more than enough on its own, enough to find the film success, enough for viewers to fall in love with it.
As I think I’ve made clear, it’s the use of sound that is the most important in Screaming Silence–and I wish that Writer Wood and Director Hal Waghorn had taken that more to heart. I wish that the duo would have avoided using dialogue altogether, and I felt that the one moment when there is a bit of dialogue actually steals from the intensity of the film. The dialogue cuts through the tension, weakening the narrative and the film as a whole. That’s my biggest grievance, that the thing that worked so well to help develop the film is disregarded in the final few minutes.
The acting is so strong. The use of sound is brilliant. The omission of dialogue is perfect. Until it’s not. The acting never falters, the use of sound never weakens–but that aforementioned dialogue steals from the heart of Screaming Silence. There was something nearly perfect here, but by the time Screaming Silence had concluded I was actually quite bummed. I needed the intense emotional connection to remain from start to finish, and while there is certainly strong emotion present, the film ends on something of a low note. Screaming Silence falls off by the end, and what was a beautiful film with incredible sentimental value ultimately left me feeling like it needed more.
Directed by Hal Waghorn.
Written by Kalyn Elizabeth Wood.
Starring Kalyn Wood & Kim Wood.
7.5/10 = WORTH RENTING OR BUYING
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