San Francisco Silent Film Festival Highlights Unearthed Treasures of Film History | Festivals & Awards

The first evening show of the day was Frank Borzage’s “The Lady,” starring the incomparable Norma Talmadge. I first saw this film a few years back as part of the online component of Pordenone, but I may as well have never seen it for how much the big screen transformed the experience. Talmadge at one … Read more

A (Not So) Brief History of Silent Film Influences on Pop Music | Features

This version, which still plays at rep cinemas to this day, includes songs performed by Pat Benatar, Jon Anderson, Adam Ant, Cycle V, Loverboy, Billy Squier, Freddie Mercury, and Bonnie Tyler, the later of whom received a Grammy nomination for her rendition of “Here She Comes.” Mercury recorded “Love Kills,” his solo contribution to the … Read more

Beyoncé lands in first while Godzilla silences Silent Night

Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé took first while new release films from Japan and India saw better debuts than John Woo’s Latest, Silent Night. AMC Theaters has found a new winning formula: take highly successful artists with concerts that seemed to sell out, or at the very least have ticket prices that no ordinary person … Read more

Beyoncé is no Taylor Swift while Godzilla mutes Silent Night

Beyoncé’s Renaissance will easily win the weekend, but the low $20 million debut is far from the $92 million of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour. Numbers have begun rolling in for this first weekend of December and to the surprise of no one, Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé is seeing a first place finish in the … Read more

Silent Night movie review & film summary (2023)

Nobody speaks a full word of written dialogue. Characters grunt when they crash against a wall, get punched in the gut, or are struck by a car. They gasp or scream when they’re shot or tortured. You hear sound effects and soundscape noises throughout, such as wind, rain, footsteps, and traffic. There are pop songs with lyrics on the soundtrack, interspersed with … Read more

All Is Not Calm: John Woo on Silent Night | Interviews

Finally, Woo has returned to the States with the high-concept holiday bloodbath “Silent Night.” After his young son is caught in the crossfire between two opposing gangs and shot dead on Christmas Eve, a grieving father (Joel Kinnaman) tracks down those responsible. The twist here is that the entire film is conveyed without a single … Read more

Joel Kinnaman tried going mute for Silent Night

Joel Kinnaman tried out method acting for his upcoming action-thriller Silent Night by going mute…for a little while anyway. Joel Kinnaman thought he would give his best shot at working with the legendary John Woo for the upcoming revenge actioner Silent Night by going, well, silent. Appearing in The Tonight Show, Joel Kinnaman remembered his … Read more

John Woo Finally Returns With ‘Silent Night’ Trailer

It’s been 20 years since John Woo made an American thriller. The master of Hong Kong action films like The Killer and Hard Boiled initially came to Hollywood in the early 90s, and found success with a string of very Woo-ish action flicks like Face/Off and Mission: Impossible II. But after a couple of flops he returned home and has been … Read more