The directing actress worked on the film Silent Sign (originally created under the much more provocative original name Pussy Island) for 7 long years, and it is therefore an extremely important and significant material for her, which has quite a lot to say. She ended up teaming up with ET Feigenbaum, with whom she had already worked on High Fidelity, on the script, and cast her current partner, star Channing Tatum, in one of the central roles, along with a number of up-and-coming stars and established veterans. The act was then in the making for so long that it jumped on the long-running train of modern satires, which combine humorous pokes at society with a mysterious and chilling plot. And maybe Zoë jumped on that train a little late.
The story unfolds around the young waitress Frida, who is obviously infatuated with the well-known billionaire and tycoon Slater King. He’s had a nasty media scandal and is currently questioning his conscience, founding charities, going to therapy and sequestering himself in the peace of his private island… he’s simply declaring himself to be a new person.
Frida, charmed by his charm, would like to win his favor, which she manages to do in a bizarre way during one gala evening. A spark immediately flies between the pair and Slater invites her and her friend Jess to stay on his private island, which will also be attended by his colleagues and acquaintances. Women thus arrive practically in paradise on earth and enjoy life among the cream of the crop to the fullest. Alcohol is flowing, drugs are not spared here either, and Slater is clearly interested in Frida. But soon the heroines start to find out that something strange might be happening on the island and they gradually get signs that they should run away as quickly as possible.
Silent Sign: The Final Trailer | Vertical Entertainment
What’s weird going on here?
In addition to the clearly visible satirical part, Silent Sign also wants to draw attention to important social issues and exclamation points of (not only) modern times, all of this served in a mysterious and chilling garb, so that the subsequent point after all the tension building hits the viewer like a big boulder. Which Kravitz partially succeeds very solidly. He comes with a very confident and striking director who clearly knows what he wants to say and can play sympathetically with the audience. It builds tension and a sense of uncertainty about where the plot is actually going in a nice gradual and creeping way. It also helps itself with great audio-visuals, carefully composed images and accented loud sounds at the right moments, which are meant to throw the viewer even more off balance.
Although it is not an innovative directing style, it actually works without any problems and the picture is very nice to look at throughout. The novelty has the right drive, an excellent camera and a damn nice cast with an unusually sly Tatum and a number of “old acquaintances” in secondary and aptly portrayed roles. In short, it’s nice to see Christina Slater, Geena Davis or Haley Joel Osment on the big screen after a long time, who also thoroughly enjoy their roles bordering on caricatures. Only Naomi Ackie in the lead role can’t be found for a long time by the viewer (even if at the end they understand a little why) and it’s not possible to root for her as fiercely as, for example, the better portrayed and more sympathetic Anya Taylor-Joy in the thematically similar Menu. Fortunately, this role will again be played by the great Adria Arjona.
A touch of both Lynch and Peele
Even so, the film has one unwanted flaw – it came a little later and after more vocal competition. The result shows that Kravitz took inspiration from many sources, sometimes she tries to appear mysteriously Lynchian (after all, the casting of Kyle MacLachlan reveals a lot), at other times she plays a female Jordan Peele and wants to create a new Escape. In addition, with its satire and digs into cream or social networks, it reminds us of the already mentioned Menu, Triangle of Sorrow, To nic, dráha, 2 Na nože or the popular series Bílý lotos. Kravitz seems to have taken something from each of them, and while she undoubtedly has the craft in her pinky, she still lacks a distinctive style and signature.
This can also be seen in the finale itself, when the point is still quite prominent and tries to convey an important message, but a few years ago it would probably have surprised and resonated even more. Its power is also taken away by the fact that Kravitz overcombines his trump cards and after the main twist, the last third drags on too much and he resorts to a half-pathetic explanation of what the author wanted to say in the first place. And he explains it long enough for everyone to understand. Instead of an emphatic and intense point, the picture falls a bit off the chain, which is a shame considering the honestly built and atmospheric rest. Even so, Zoë Kravitz has emerged as a relatively strong and self-confident author who has yet to find her clearer creative voice, but her other projects will be worth watching.
Check out the ranking of the best thrillers according to the Kinobox database.
The well-known actress Zoë Kravitz made her debut with a craftily precise directorial debut, which perhaps draws too much from foreign sources, but is nevertheless a fairly entertaining and exciting social barb with an appropriately strong point. Unlike its genre competition, it may still lack a more distinctive style and, in particular, a sharper ending, but even so, Silent Sign will not be lost among other related pieces.
Milan Rozšafný
