'The Silent Hour' Reviews: "Anderson turns The Silent Hour into a lean, propulsive Die Hard riff, taking the characters’ disabilities into account without making them into weaknesses"

         On October 11, 2024, Republic Pictures released 'The Silent Hours', which has earned a mixed reception from critics. In the film, "Boston Detective Frank Shaw (Joel Kinnaman) returns to duty after a career-altering injury leaves him with permanent hearing loss. Tasked with interpreting for Ava Fremont (Sandra Mae Frank), a deaf witness to a brutal gang murder, they find themselves cornered in a soon-to-be-condemned apartment building when the killers return to eliminate her. Cut off from the outside world, these two strangers must lean on each other to outsmart killers they can't hear coming for their only hope of making it out alive." The ensemble cast includes Mekhi Phifer and Mark Strong. Read the full review round-up below.

       Josh Bell of Crooked Marquee says, "After starring as a mute crime victim in John Woo’s 2023 action thriller Silent Night, Joel Kinnaman now stars as a hearing-impaired cop in Brad Anderson’s action thriller The Silent Hour. Kinnaman’s characters experience similar anguish over the incidents that led to their injuries, although Boston police detective Frank Shaw is more stable, and he’s not out for revenge. Instead, he’s targeted by a gang of drug dealers while helping to interview a deaf witness to an underworld murder. It takes a little too long for Frank and Ava (Sandra Mae Frank) to end up trapped in a half-renovated apartment building with their assailants, but once everything is in place, Anderson turns The Silent Hour into a lean, propulsive Die Hard riff, taking the characters’ disabilities into account without making them into weaknesses. The story doesn’t amount to much (don’t strain too hard to figure out the relevance of Frank’s partner), but Kinnaman gives Frank a solid character arc amid the exciting, well-crafted action."

       Roger Moore of Movie Nation notes, "Even if the screenwriter is cribbing his “practice script” from Screenwriting 201 “dirty cops” thriller, there’s a lot going for this one, including director and the stars." Concluding, The picture’s task is to trap them in that nearly empty building with or without a phone, with or without a firearm, as bad guys — some wearing badges — try to track them down and silence them. The threat is palpable and laid-out in blunt strokes. The “solutions” to problems are likewise set up to be checked-off, one at a time. But the obvious foreshadowing doesn’t negate the film’s suspense or the occasional clever bit of “get out of this jam” problem-solving. We can be a step or two ahead of our couple in peril and still revel in the execution of the their various means of escape. Providing they do escape. Anderson lets us experience their plight as they do, in shocking blasts of silence when what they really need is that one sense that will tell them the head honcho of the villains (Mekhi Phifer, excellent) is closing in, chambering a round or calling for more minions to help him stop them. The script by Dan Hall is strictly paint-by-numbers — cut and dried and predictable. But the execution atones for some of that, and the performances give it that extra something that makes even a formulaic thriller worth your time."

Photo by LexScope on Unsplash

        Louisa Moore of Screen Zealots writes, "The Silent Hour” is a passable yet largely forgettable crime thriller that, despite director Brad Anderson’s attempt to inject a bit of originality from Dan Hall‘s screenplay, relies too heavily on familiar tropes and well-worn character types. This isn’t the type of movie that you’ll remember seeing a few months from now, nor is it destined to become a favorite, but it’s more than passable. The film stars Joel Kinnaman as Frank Shaw, a Boston detective adjusting to life after a career-altering injury leaves him with permanent hearing loss. Returning to duty, he is tasked with interpreting for Ava (Sandra Mae Frank), a deaf witness to a brutal gang murder. When the killers return to eliminate her, Frank and Ava find themselves cornered in a condemned apartment building, working together to outsmart the killers they can’t hear coming. The story tries to make something of its interesting angle (the unique challenges faced by a detective with hearing loss who is protecting a deaf witness), which does add a dynamic layer that’s mildly intriguing. This doesn’t set the film apart from the well-worn crime thriller formula, though, because Anderson doesn’t take the time to fully explore the emotional or psychological depths of living with these limitations. Instead, the movie focuses on the more immediate (and expected) tension of Frank and Ava being trapped in a condemned apartment building with gang members stalking them."