Silk Reviews

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this movie but since I have a weak spot for Keira Knightley, I thought I should check it out anyway. I always wonder why she always shows up in costume dramas instead of some more contemporary stories. Anyway, I thought that this one was honestly pretty boring. I mean, you see the main character going on some huge trips first to Africa and then several times to Japan but I never felt any excitement about those travels. Indeed, they kept telling you that those trips were really hazardous but, honestly, really nothing remotely thrilling actually happened. I know, this movie was not supposed to be an adventure flick but a romantic one but even on that level it failed to deliver the goods. In my opinion, even though they tried to give some deep romantic meaning to the proceedings, I thought it was just some typical Western sexual fantasy about a silent and docile Asian woman. Furthermore, I think that Michael Pitt is a decent actor but he is not what you could call ‘leading man’ material. Or maybe it is just that his character was so terribly passive, I don’t know. Still, I make it sounds as if it was a very bad movie but it was definitely not worthless. Indeed, the photography was beautiful, with some very nice shots and the music was pretty good too. Honestly, I think the whole thing had some potential and I was wondering what a director such as Terrence Malick would have done with this material. Anyway, to conclude, even though it was rather weak, it still remains a decent period piece and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

Features great cinematography, good supporting performances and a decent script, but is marred by a horrible lead performance and a poorly-crafted climax. To be fair, the overwhelmingly negative critical response to Silk is a little harsh. It's being referred to as an extremely slow-moving and boring drama, and while there are some elements of that, we've seen far more monotonous films, especially in the realm of period pieces. Silk is mostly engaging, at least to those who can appreciate dialogue-based films and aren't in need of a dosage of action sequences.

The main problem with Silk, though, is that Michael Pitt is incredibly bad as Herve, and I hate saying it because I do like Pitt (see The Dreamers for evidence that this guy can actually give a decent performance). I recently reviewed Charlie Bartlett and said that Anton Yelchin's lead performance was sometimes disserviced by his "blank stares"... little did I know how much worse someone could do with the same kind of expression. There is a scene towards the end in which Herve is listening to someone read a letter for him, and the scene absolutely requires him to display emotion, yet we get absolutely nothing. Credit goes to Keira Knightley and Alfred Molina for balancing out Pitt's horrible leading turn here. They give us as much as they can with what the script allows them.

Though the ending packs an emotional punch and cleverly reiterates words that were spoken in the opening scenes, the emotional void in Herve's countenance makes it impossible to be fully invested in this. In addition, one of the aspects that leads to the climax is truly laughable. I don't want to spoil anything, but during the final scenes, a character is supposed to find another character in a city and the searcher has absolutely no address or other helpful information, and the explanation that is given when the character finds the person being searched for is simply ridiculous, almost to the point that it takes away from the seriousness and emotional depth of what is happening in the concluding scenes. The only thing I give Michael Pitt credit for is the subdued nature of his narrative voiceover, which perfectly fits the tone of the movie; not much happens in Silk, but it's still mostly interesting to watch it unfold. Still, there are too many crucial factors that keep it from being as effective a drama as it should be.

First, I have to say how wonderful the book is. As with most cinematographic adaptations, this one fails to bring the story to life on screen.
The actor's performance, and by that I mean Pitt's, is terrible. When you read the book, he certainly does not come to mind. His voice is not appropriate, nor is his age, for the role presented in the book.
That said, I realize that not everyone envisions books the same way, and that is a good thing (most of the time). However, in my eyes, the movie does not do justice to the writing style of Alessandro Baricco, author of the book "Silk".

The cinematography of the movie is beautiful, although at times one has to wonder why there is so much light in the Japanese houses. That seems overdone.

I found the movie much too slow, pointless and ... lifeless.
I had much higher expectations for it.
A disappointment.