SPEAK NO EVIL – Review by T.J. Callahan
Speak No Evil : No tongues
“I promise you guys, it’s going to be a great weekend.” But Speak No Evil isn’t a tongue in cheek thriller. What this remake of a 2022 Dutch horror drama is, is a social satire on the excessive extremes of the middle class that will leave you breathless. And it’s fun…if waiting for potential torture and murder is fun.
James McAvoy stars in the new English version that follows the original story almost to a tee…until the last 30 minutes. That’s where this Rated R 2024 release switches gears and tones down on the gruesomeness, but, fortunately, not the suspense and shock.
The basic premise is the same, Paddy (McAvoy) is dying to make new friends while vacationing in Italy. The Brit, his wife and son hit it off with an American couple and he invites them and their young daughter to his UK countryside home for a weekend. The idyllic retreat soon turns into a nightmare as Paddy isn’t as fun loving and hospitable as he was thought to be.
Speak No Evil is a slow burn charade that exhibits evil through the vulnerability of our relationships, the way we react to our intuitions, and the uncomfortableness of confrontation. The film tosses out the damsel in distress stereotype for a strong woman and protective mother (played by Mackenzie Davis) who has the level head when lives are at stake. She sees all the red flags when her husband (Scoot McNairy) has on blinders.
McAvoy is at his devilish best. Not since Split has he been so sarcastically sinister and you can tell he loves it. Speak No Evil is one of those horror films that’s fun to see in a full theater. Its “yell at the screen” thrilling. My husband Ricky had two 👀’s open, even though he wanted to cover them at times. Speak No Evil pushes the needle to a 7 Out of 10 on the TeejFlixometer.
