Speak No Evil is a remake of the 2022 Danish film of the same name. Both versions explore the weaponization of civility, and how your own politeness can be turned against you. But while the original had a raw feel to it, this is a more polished Hollywood movie. It’s ultimately a difference between letting the movie go where it needs versus trying to play to the audience. I do prefer the original, but this remake was still pretty good.
Ben (Scoot McNairy) and Louise (Mackenzie Davis) Dalton are vacation in in Italy with their daughter when they meet Paddy (James McAvoy) and Ciara (Ainsling Franciosi) and their son. The couples hit if off, and Paddy invites Ben and Louise to visit them at their isolated country home. What starts as a nice visit quickly turns dark as it becomes clear that Paddy and Ciara may have more sinister intentions.
Speak No Evil starts out as a slow burn, using the first half of the movie to build a sense of dread. It seems like a nice family visit, but you know something is definitely wrong. Unfortunately, if you’ve seen the original, you know exactly what is wrong. And so, the first half of the movie was not that effective for me as it is quite similar to the original. It’s well done, but I suspect it may be more effective the less you know about the plot.
The second half of the film is far better as things pick up speed as Paddy and Ciara play their psychological games. Fortunately, this is also where this version starts to separate itself, with a third act that is different. It’s not better, but I did not know the exact details of what was going to happen, making it enjoyable. As this is the Hollywood version, it does opt to go for more action and violence rather than double down on the sense of dread. The original provides a sense of something that could happen, while here the final act makes it far more implausible. Still, when the final act kicks into gear, it is entertaining, even if it is a little over the top and plays out like a more traditional movie.
Where Speak No Evil shines is with the performances. This is a great cast. McNairy, Davis and Franciosi all deliver terrific performances. Davis is particularly strong as you can see the deeper worry just below her surface of forced civility. The performances of the child actors (Alix West Lefler and Dan Hough) were great as well. Movies like this can be ruined by the wrong child actor but, in this case, both are more than up to the task.
But the standout is clearly McAvoy. He’s at the top of his game here as he displays a wide range of emotion. He can go from charming and playful one minute, to slightly menacing the next, to all out terrifying. There are even times when he makes you feel for his character. In doing so, he creates a villain that is all over the place and completely captivating. It’s a fantastic performance and worth the price of admission.
While I do prefer the original version of Speak No Evil, this version does enough to merit its existence. The first half is a fairly straight remake, but the later half does make enough changes to make it worth seeing. Fans of the original may find that they don’t like where this version ultimately goes, but I found it enjoyable enough.
If you haven’t seen the original, then I do think it is worth your time if you like a slow burn and some psychological terror. It’s not a great movie (even without the comparison), but an intriguing premise and a terrific cast make it worth seeing. Once thing I know for sure is that I am going to stop being so damn polite.
Have you seen Speak No Evil? Are you planning to? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.