Greetings gentle readers and welcome to another installment of the Sunday Morning Movie. Today it’s a story of faith and faith lost, Chinmoku:
and next week’s film, Night on the Galactic Express:
Reviews of Chinmoku:
Cineoutsider says:
If what makes a story work lies at least in part in the manner of its telling, then it is here that Silence transcends any barriers that its subject matter may throw up. Strip the film of its religious clothing and it becomes a story of the repression of freedom of speech and thought, of ideas considered contrary or even dangerous to those of the state and the power that can be exercised to suppress them. This reading is particularly evident in the powerful final scenes, which do not play to expectations and are open to multiple interpretations, none of which make for particularly comfortable viewing, whatever your beliefs may be.
The religiously sympathetic have expressed admiration for the film’s gripping and insightful exploration of faith and sacrifice, and I have no quarrel with this. For the power of its filmmaking and its refusal to demonise the opposing point of view, Silence is an important and arresting film. Nonetheless, the cultural and religious elements remain central to its story and message and will inevitably effect how you read it. My first viewing of the film was in the company of an older generation Japanese friend of the Shinto religion, and she remained largely unsympathetic to Rodriguez and his fate. At one point, the Padre’s cheerful escort describes Christianity as “an unwelcome gift forced on the receiver,” adding, “We have our own religion. We don’t need yours.” My friend’s reaction was instantaneous – she pointed at the screen in annoyance and snapped “Exactly!”
The Projection Booth says:
Silence, as I said before, is a difficult and troubling film. It raises more questions than it answers. Can a bad man achieve good things? I don’t believe so. I think in the end Rodrigo failed and became what he hated. But stories of failure aren’t out of place in this world, and the story central to both the film and novel Silence is a mostly true one, based upon a real man. Christians are still a very small percentage of the Japanese population, and it’s no wonder why if this film is anything to go by. A most interesting detail regarding the relationship between Japan and Christianity is revealed in the film’s opening narration. When the Catholics first came to Japan they brought not only their religion and trade with the western world, but guns. Is it possible for a man to hold peace in one hand and death in the other? I doubt it. This film is a beautifully made film. The cinematography, acting, and scripting are all on point. The central performance is moving and heartbreaking. But the film is not an easy sell, not only because it will prove to be controversial no matter what, but because its message is bleak. Nevertheless, Silence is great movie, even if it is a difficult one.
Unseen Films says:
This isn’t to say it’s a bad film. Its absolutely not- I absolutely think that the IMDB rating of 7 is right on. I really like the film, especially as a meditation on faith and belief in a new world. I think it’s a great look about the clash of ideas as societies come into contact and conflict. While I think it doesn’t nail it in the conclusion because there is a little too much head over the heart, everything in the proceeding two hours is deeply thought provoking – in some ways that enhance the novel and in others that are completely new.
Having seen the film and having spent many hours pondering it and the novel I completely understand why Endo disavowed the film. The alteration of motivation changes what the story is. Where Endo’s tale is a spiritual journey about our own faith, Shinoda’s film is a story of belief in an alien world and a clash of cultures. Its a version of the story of the novel but it is not completely the heart of it. I can completely understand why Endo would eventually walk away from something he had worked on. However I don’t think the changes invalidate the film either as a version of Endo’s story, it is after all extremely enigmatic, or as a film on it’s own terms.
What is really cool is that despite differences from the novel the film stands on it’s own. I really do think that had I seen the film blind, without reading the novel or being aware of the Scorsese film I would have liked this film just as much (though I don’t think more). Yes it is flawed on it’s own terms, but it also a wonderful meditation of thoughts and ideas. Its a film that is absolutely worth seeing for itself and not for any connection to any other version of the story because it will confront you with a whole new set of questions about what you believe.
My take:
A powerful, if imperfect, film. I found myself siding with the Father Rodrigo at first but after watching the end of the film I kind of backtracked and rethought my original impressions. He was arrogant, overly certain in his piety, and had small regard for the struggles of the Japanese Christian peasants who make up his flock. He dismisses the reality of torture for the native Christians by crisply stating that the Lord had been crucified so they too must be prepared to suffer for their faith. He refuses to hear the confession of the man who betrayed him, leaving the wretch to agonize over his guilt. The ending took me by surprise to say the least. I’m awarding it ⭐⭐, it’s worth a second watch.
Director: Masahiro Shinoda
Writers: Shūsaku Endō, Masahiro Shinoda
Plot (Spoilers!):
Two priests, Father Rodrigo and Father Gariupe, have arrived in feudal Japan to spread the faith and to seek a mentor who has gone missing. They must be cautious, Christianity has been banned by the authorities and the punishment for it’s practice is torture and death. They move by night, led by a local fisherman.
For a time, they attend to the needs of a small congregation of peasant Christians but are eventually betrayed. Father Rodrigo heads out to wander the countryside, accompanied by the treacherous fisherman as a guide. Eventually he is betrayed again and is taken captive.
He is imprisoned and tortured. He is reunited with his mentor but finds the man has renounced his faith and has become an official in the Japanese government. Faced with such a disappointment and with the suffering of the villagers that had protected him at the hands of the torturers, his faith fails him and he renounces God.
****
Bonus Jazz: The Mills Brothers perform Caravan, using their voices as instruments.
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That’s Mike Douglas who appears at the end of the Mills Brothers’ remarkable performance. I remember as a kid, watching Douglas’ show often on daytime time TV in the 1960’s. Boston’s Channel 4 was part of the Group W network and carried his show. Douglas often featured performers like the Mills Brothers. Douglas was also, as I recall, a fine interviewer.
Love that ‘Caravan’! Tight!
A resounding Yes! to Mills Brothers ‘Caravan’!!!
I, too, remember the Mike Douglas Show. And remember that the mikes in those days did not have auto-tuning. The Mills Brothers were REAL talent.
There is a Scorsese version from the same original source.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silence_(2016_film)
Despite praise by reviewers it bombed commercially.
Ironically, I think the Shinoda adaptation did rather well commercially–but it was mostly limited to Japan. Afaik, Endo was not happy with it for editing out the religious elements which were, obviously, central to his vision, but rather secondary to Shinoda.
It’s been awhile but don’t think I cared for the Scorsese version–agreeing with the contrary critics who said it was too long and self indulgent. But then I’ve always thought that Marty–master of technique–was a bit overrated.
Silence, of course, is the famous novel by Shusaku Endo. Shinoda’s adaptation has been subject to criticism from the fans of the novel because he took a lot of liberties with the plot which weakened the key points in the novel: Endo was a Catholic, whose novels reflected his struggles reconciling his faith and his culture–Japanese culture being inherently quite hostile to the idea of Christianity, as he saw it. This is huge, especially, in Silence (and also, Deep River and the Samurai). Shinoda did not seem to have appreciated these.
Martin Scorsese’s more recent adaptation is much closer to the original. It’s a treat to watch both versions side by side, while reading the novel in Japanese and English side by side. In an odd way, Shinoda’s adaptation gives a sense of how a Japanese not of Christian background processes (Japanese) Christianity.