John Woo takes on a different challenge: a movie without dialogues’.
Acclaimed action director John Woo returns with a gritty revenge tale in “Silent Night,” now streaming on Lionsgate Play. Full of Woo’s signature “bullet ballet” style, this film redefines the action genre with visceral, thrill-a-minute storytelling—all without a single line of dialogue.
“Silent Night” unfolds from tragedy on Christmas Eve: a young boy is killed by a stray bullet during a gang gunfight. The boy’s father, Brian Godlock (Joel Kinnaman), embarks on a relentless hunt for the culprits. Although he manages to locate several gang members, his confrontation with their leader, Playa (Harold Torres), leaves him gravely injured and unable to speak.
Surviving but mute, Brian sinks into despair, burdening his wife, Saya (Catalina Sandino), who grieves their son while tending to her shattered husband. When Saya decides to leave, Brian finds renewed purpose: vengeance.
John Woo comments on the challenge of storytelling without dialogue: “Making a film without dialogue is more difficult. It’s not an easy job to do. You have to think more than usual. You need to find new ways, new styles, and a very unique language to tell the story. Unique visual language to tell the story. The sound, the vision. Using the vision instead of the language. It’s not easy work. It needs a lot of thought.”
Lead actor Joel Kinnaman shares his experience working with Woo: “John is not just an iconic film director. He is the master of the camera. I’ve never worked with a director who can tell so much of the story just through camera movement. Doing a film without dialogue opens up many opportunities to design beautiful shots. Instead of the usual coverage, many scenes are just one or two setups, telling the whole story through staging and camera movement. It’s going to be a very artistic film.”
Catch “Silent Night” on Lionsgate Play for a uniquely cinematic experience.
Discover how a tormented father deals with grief in Silent Night, now streaming on Lionsgate Play.
