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Review #237 of 365
Film: The Quiet (2006) [R] 96 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $12.25
Where Viewed: Landmark Mayan, Denver, CO
When 1st Seen: 5 September 2006
Time: 7:15 p.m.
Directed by: Jamie Babbit Written by: Abdi Nazemian & Micah Schraft
Featured Cast (Where I Remember Him/Her From):
Elisha Cuthbert ("24" & The Girl Next Door) • Camilla Belle (When a Stranger Calls) • Martin Donovan (The Sentinel) • Edie Falco ("The Sopranos" & Freedomland) • Shawn Ashmore (X-Men: The Last Stand) • Katy Mixon (Zombie Prom)
Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word or less review of this film]
'Strangely enough', mondo TV director of such shows as "The Gilmore Girls", "Wonderfalls", "Nip/Tuck", Jamie Babbit seems quite at home with the script for The Quiet. The quotation marks were meant for sarcasm not because I am quoting someone else, you see. For the story of The Quiet, which might be called a Frankenstein plot (meaning that parts seems to be borrowed from so many previous films and sewn together into a new monster), features teenagers with dark secrets living in quiet, small town families reared by modern-day, USA parents with dark secrets. After her deaf father is killed in a head-on collision while crossing the street, deaf and mute Dot (Camilla Belle looking like a porcelain doll most of the film) who also lost her mother to cancer at age 7, goes to live with her only living relatives, her Godparents Olivia (Edie Falco) and Paul (Martin Donovan) Deer and their similarly high school-aged daughter, Nina (Elisha Cuthbert). As Dot is sullen, morose, silent, and dark, Nina and her best friend, Michelle (Katy Mixon), find her a complete and utter drag. She eats alone at lunch and cares not for the company of other people. Over the course of the first few weeks of her new life at the Deer residence, Dot learns the perfect little family is anything but harmonious. Instead, the dinner table conversations are as dissonant as they are mundane. Actually, Olivia is highly addicted to some prescription drugs that make her tired, boisterous, and out of sorts, Paul's relationship with his only daughter goes well beyond that of the type USA law finds legal and most people's ethics find moral. The fact, however, that Nina seems to capitalize on the unsavory relationship makes the story all the more disturbing. What story about high school girls and their hi jinx would be complete without a boy basketball player after whom all of the girls are lusting? His name is Connor (Shawn Ashmore), and he is the star of the team, of course. Nina and Michelle spend a lot of their time talking about him and how to get closer to him. As cheerleaders, they stake the inside track. With girl talk about young men that would cause the hairs to stand up on the necks of most parents and guardians today, they plan and connive ways to ultimately get him into a compromising situation. But, Connor has found his soul mate in the silent but beautiful Dot. He overhears her playing the piano—the film is rife with musical allusions and references as Dot is fixated on Beethoven--in a practice room one afternoon and becomes smitten. Indeed, Dot's piano-playing becomes a refrain for the film transitioning from one movement to the next. As it turns out, except for poor Connor who wears his heart on his sleeve and boisterous Michelle whose life is an open book, everyone else in the story is living in a stretto soup of complex lies. Dot's lie is so unexpected and unbelievable, it turns the story upside down. Of course, it won't be revealed here. Quite simply, however, everything culminates in a chilling finale that leads to a shocking murder and the brutal truth revealed at last. Do not expect a happy ending or even a justifiable one. This is not a story about fairness. This is a story about things racing presto out of control with no end in sight, and how once the calamitous cavalcade commences there is no way to stop it.
"good film…shifts from solemn adagio to violent allegro as it nears its coda."
Camilla Belle and Elisha Cuthbert are perfectly cast. They play their roles with veteran approaches. Each character bears the burdens of their past, the split personalities required to be the persons they are inside and outside, and a longing for a simpler, uncomplicated future. Both actresses seem to comprehend the incredible complexity of their respective characters and lace their performances with many layers that peel back as the story unravels. Likewise, Mr. Donovan and Ms Falco breathe life into their characters which, unfortunately, are still a bit wooden or distant and not nearly as well-developed as the young women's roles. Both are very mentally ill individuals living lies buried beneath lies. Director, Jamie Babitt has transitioned well from the small box to the big screen and a self-contained story. The pacing of the film shifts from solemn adagio to violent allegro as it nears its coda. Indeed, Jeff Rona's musical score assists in springing the traps and ensnaring the victims as surely everyone will try to find some good to come out of all this.
When it comes to the film's weaknesses, they are, as we so often find in scripts today, the persistent archetypal and stereotypical characters or character traits used by screenwriters to save time, I guess. There's the nosey guidance counselor who seems to know more about Nina Deer and Dot than her parents. There's a subservient kitchen staff member who seems to be the only one in the school who knows sign language. There's the fact that the cheerleading squad is made completely of girls. Connor is all preoccupied with his basketball scholarship. Michelle would be any parent or guardian's worst nightmare of a daughter. Meanwhile, as complex as Nina is, she too bears the stereotypical 'cheerleader' mentality about much of her life. It's too bad, because were it not for this, the script, even with all its controversial elements would be worthy of high praise. The Quiet falls in to the category of films that could have been great if it (a) either didn't take itself so seriously as to become quasi-campy or (b) actually took itself very seriously as to ensure all characters of are equally compelling and there is minimal reliance on stereotypes. Still, as a mystery thriller style film, it was a fairly good film to get the fall season rolling.
When it comes to the film's weaknesses, they are, as we so often find in scripts today, the persistent archetypal and stereotypical characters or character traits used by screenwriters to save time, I guess. There's the nosey guidance counselor who seems to know more about Nina Deer and Dot than her parents. There's a subservient kitchen staff member who seems to be the only one in the school who knows sign language. There's the fact that the cheerleading squad is made completely of girls. Connor is all preoccupied with his basketball scholarship. Michelle would be any parent or guardian's worst nightmare of a daughter. Meanwhile, as complex as Nina is, she too bears the stereotypical 'cheerleader' mentality about much of her life. It's too bad, because were it not for this, the script, even with all its controversial elements would be worthy of high praise. The Quiet falls in to the category of films that could have been great if it (a) either didn't take itself so seriously as to become quasi-campy or (b) actually took itself very seriously as to ensure all characters of are equally compelling and there is minimal reliance on stereotypes. Still, as a mystery thriller style film, it was a fairly good film to get the fall season rolling.
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Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word review of this film]
Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word review of this film]
Other Projects Featuring The Quiet (2006) Cast Members
Elisha Cuthbert • Camilla Belle • Martin Donovan
Edie Falco • Shawn Ashmore • Katy Mixon
Other Projects Directed by The Quiet (2006) Director
Jamie Babbit
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The Quiet (2006) Review-lite [150-word cap]
TV director, Jamie Babbit, of "The Gilmore Girls" and "Nip/Tuck" seems at home with the script for The Quiet featuring teenagers with dark secrets reared by parents with dark secrets. After her deaf father is killed, Dot (Camilla Belle), also deaf and mute, goes to live with her only relatives, her Godparents Olivia (Edie Falco) and Paul (Martin Donovan) Deer and their daughter, Nina (Elisha Cuthbert). As Dot is sullen and morose, Nina and her best friend, Michelle (Katy Mixon), find her a complete and utter drag. As time passes, Dot learns the perfect Deer family is anything but harmonious. Everyone, it seems, including Dot, is living in a stretto soup of complex lies. Once the calamitous cavalcade commences there is no way to stop it with everything culminating in a chilling finale. Ultimately, however, persistent stereotypical character traits detract from what otherwise could have been a compelling film.
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