Speak No Evil (2024)

The 2022 Danish film Speak No Evil left a toll on any audience member willing to sit through its punishing display of brutality. Directed and co-written by Christian Tafdrup, the original film was an oppressively bleak and existential thriller that took great lengths at depicting the horror of casual cruelty. When news of an American remake was announced, there was hope that a new take on the material could lend itself to a powerful new spin on the material. Unfortunately, this Blumhouse production substitutes the original’s haunting portrayal of evil for a toothless crowd-pleaser with none of the power.

Courtesy Universal Pictures

Louise (Mackenzie Davis) and Ben (Scoot McNairy) are on vacation in Italy with their young daughter, Agnes (Alix West Lefler). While attempting to fix their marital woes, Ben seeks the friendship of fellow family man Paddy (James McAvoy), also on vacation with his wife Ciara (Aisling Franciosi) and their mute son Ant (Dan Hough). Paddy is the opposite of Ben; outspoken, brash and consistently pushing boundaries with his words and actions. Paddy’s wife, Ciara (The Nightingale‘s Aisling Franciosi) is easygoing and free-spirited. They are everything Ben and Louise wish they were. Despite initial hesitations, both couples hit it off and form a friendship. When Paddy and Ciara invite the couple and their daughter to stay with them at their idyllic country home, Ben and Louise think they’re going to have a relaxing time away, however red flags begin piling up. Paddy begins acting far more passive aggressive before acting, well, flat-out aggressive. His attitude shifts, casually forcing the vegetarian Louise to eat a bite of meat and acts increasingly physically and emotionally abusive towards his son. Against, their better instincts, Ben and Louise decide to stay and force on through the vacation until things eventually reach an explosive breaking point.

Writer/director James Watkins has had success in the past with strong tension-escalation, with his similarly-themed debut feature Eden Lake and the spooky, atmospheric The Woman in Black. With his take on the material, Watkins is able to maintain his own strong undercurrent of stirring tension, but he isn’t able to bring anything new that Tafdrup’s original didn’t already cover. The filmmaker does an admirable job of allowing the audience to gradually stew in the squirm-inducing microaggressions. For much of the runtime, Watkins forgoes a typical Hollywood score for an off-putting silence in the background. Like his characters, Watkins doesn’t allow you to leave the unpleasantness on display, but rather forces the audience to face it head-on. As effective as many of these confrontations are, the film is largely afraid  to go anywhere near the extreme, taboo-pushing elements of the original or even the underrated 2011 Straw Dogs remake. You can feel Watkins continuously pulling his punches, leaving a film, by the final act, that treats its audience like fans at a rock concert.

Courtesy Universal Pictures

Watkins does assemble a game cast that completely sells the simmering horror underneath the surface. James McAvoy taps into the physical ferocity of his Split performance, while adding a calculated sinister quality. Paddy is immediately charismatic, even when he says and does irresponsible, downright careless things around the other family. It’s a big, showy performance, one that excels when the character forgoes any social norm. McAvoy is perfectly equipped for the material and his performance shines because of it. Scoot McNairy does his best work when he’s playing opposite McAvoy. McNairy’s Ben is a pushover, whereas Paddy shows him a more seemingly traditional approach to a masculine lifestyle. This bond puts Ben at odds with his wife who doesn’t buy into Paddy’s facade. Davis does a solid job at portraying the protective Louise, who resists and swallows her pride until it is impossible to overlook the cruelty on display.

Anyone familiar with the original Danish film will likely predict that this remake won’t go near its nihilistic extremes, but the abrasive cruelty is ultimately the point of Tafdrup’s work. Tossing aside the nihilism of the original renders this take as little more than a hollow attempt at a studio thriller. When tensions reach a breaking point, the film turns into a conventional home-invasion thriller. Fit with applause moments for the audience and easy one-liners, the finale pivots into one big chase sequence that plays it safe at every opportunity. Even on its own terms, this final act crosses off every cliche imaginable.

Courtesy Universal Pictures

Speak No Evil gets by on the sheer prowess of its talented cast and initially promising set up. However, by switching gears and deciding to settle on being a conventional home-invasion thriller leaves the whole affair feeling unnecessary and toothless. The original Danish film left a bruise on its audience, whereas writer/director James Watkins seems far more interested in giving audiences a safe, if competently made thriller. If you’re going to redo a brutal, uncompromising vision, the worst you could do is take away everything that made it such a potent experience.

Speak No Evil is now playing in theaters.