Silence (2016, Martin Scorsese)
It's weird to have to recommend Scorsese. We all know that Scorsese + religion should be an interesting combination. It's criminal how under the radar this film went. The premise is quite simple; two jesuit priests go to Edo period Japan. Famously the period when Japan rejected any outside influences. So some brutal persecution follows (take note Pureflix, this is what real religious persecution entails). It's not simplified though, particularly when you know the destruction/colonization that many Western Christian nations practise(d).
It's not a look at Japanese/Western relations, but the film is a close examination on faith and doubt. It's an intimate story and not really connected to history per se. If you are someone who thinks that there is no room for doubt in faith, this film will be a very difficult piece to process. We thought it would be the perfect work to recommend to watch for Easter.
We especially love Scorsese's understanding and sympathy for the Judases. It was already apparent in The Last Temptation of Christ. Here, it seems, he has even more affinity with Judas. Even when we were children growing up Mormon, being taught that the man was wicked, evil, under the influence of Satan and even beyond redemption, we couldn't help but take pity on him. When you read The New Testament, it's a lot more nuanced than what is being taught in Sunday school.
Not only is the content of the film glorious, the cinematography is stunning. Oh, and this is definitely the role of a religious person for which Andrew Garfield should have been nominated. Maybe if Hacksaw Ridge had been directed by someone more subtle. All of the performances are great in this movie. We're slightly upset that the wonderful Japanese actors don't get credit in the posters the same way. Shame on you, Hollywood.
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| "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Curse you, manbun! |
