Martin Scorsese's "Silence" is a very rare work. It washes away the unbridled rhythm of "The Wolf of Wall Street". The rhythm of this film is slow and quiet, but there is a secret power. Too bad it was only nominated for Best Cinematography at the Oscars that year.
This film is adapted from the novel of the same name by Endo Shusaku. Scorsese liked this novel very much in the 1990s and always hoped to adapt it. Unfortunately, it has not been able to obtain funds and select a suitable scene until the completion of the filming of "The Wolf of Wall Street". , and with the help of Ang Lee, he found Taiwan as a filming set for Japan in the middle of the 17th century. He also had a better understanding of the original book at that time, and realized that he wanted to make the film quieter, slower, and more contemplative.
The theme of this film is about the willpower of faith. Scorsese spent almost two and a half hours to push forward the change process of the protagonist's treatment of faith one by one, using a more down-to-earth theatrical arrangement, constantly impacting the protagonist or Audience, let them question: Why is God always silent in the face of believers who are suffering? What has God done to conflicts such as wars that arise because of religion? Does he really love the world? Or should we use despair and fear to test people's willpower for faith? With firm will, God will appear?
Scorsese used these questions, observed different people, and used the perspectives of different characters to come to the answer: The first half of the film is about two priests going to Japan to preach. sacrifice. Gradually, the angle came to Father Rodriguez. He saw that another priest, Gape, was drowned in order to save the believers who were about to be executed by the Japanese. Ironically, he did not sacrifice for the faith in his heart. This shocked him. He felt that it was not worth it. For the glory of his faith, he could let others sacrifice their lives. Is this right? He should obey the opinions of the Japanese, abandon religion, and give up faith. Or let believers continue to sacrifice for their faith.
It was at this time that Father Ferreira, the teacher of Father Rodriguez, appeared, who abandoned the religion twenty years ago and integrated into the life of the Japanese, and brought a new perspective: whether Western religions can be used in Japan Rooted, are religions really incompatible, do the Japanese people who believe in Catholicism really understand what they believe in, or is it just a formality?
Scorsese also included a Japanese character named Yoshijiro in the film, a character much like the biblical Judas, reflecting many of the inconsistencies in religion. Through this role, combined with other perspectives, we can see that what Scorsese wants to say is that belief is actually a very personal thing. Because of human nature and the environment, they will make different choices, but their beliefs have always been hidden in their hearts and taken away. is only the form. Just like Yoshijiro, he betrayed the priest again and again, very annoying, but he would repent again and again. He is the weak side of human nature, but as long as he still has faith in his heart, why should he be rejected by religion? And this character more reflects Rodriguez's obsession with the form of faith. When Rodriguez finally stopped being silent and was willing to trample the statue of Jesus in order to save others, he truly gained faith and gained a new life.
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