Taglines: Silence can be killer.
Hush, a 2016 thriller directed by Mike Flanagan, has a simple yet engaging plot. The summary, which reads, “A deaf writer who retreated into the woods to live a solitary life must fight for her life in silence when a masked killer appears in her window,” was convincing enough to draw me in.
The movie introduces us to a deaf author named Maddie (Kate Siegel) who lives in isolation, with only a cat to keep her company. A violent masked intruder (John Gallagher Jr.) stumbles upon Maddie’s home after chasing down and slaying her neighbor. The killer quickly realizes that Maddie cannot hear and takes advantage of that fact.
The film follows a cat-and-mouse chase in and around the house, mixing fast action scenes and slow, suspenseful ones. I particularly enjoyed how the audio would fade in and out occasionally, giving viewers a more accurate depiction of what Maddie experiences.
Additionally, I appreciate that the story felt like something that could actually happen, in contrast to paranormal films. This makes the film more thrilling. Because the film is relatively short, at 80 minutes, and is engaging throughout, there was not a dull moment in the movie. I would highly suggest this film to someone who wants a quick thriller they haven’t seen before.
Hush is a 2016 American slasher film directed and edited by Mike Flanagan, and starring Kate Siegel, who also co-wrote the film with Flanagan. The film co-stars John Gallagher Jr., Michael Trucco, Samantha Sloyan, and Emilia “Emma” Graves. It was jointly produced by Trevor Macy through Intrepid Pictures and Jason Blum through Blumhouse Productions. The film had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 12, 2016, and was released by Netflix on April 8, 2016. It received positive reviews from critics, who praised the performances and atmosphere.
Film Review for Hush
In between its world premiere at SXSW 2016 and its debut on Netflix in early April, the canny home-invasion thriller Hush is receiving a modest theatrical rollout. That’s no doubt a testament to the effectiveness of this latest release from the horror purveyors at Blumhouse Productions and Intrepid Pictures.
With concise direction from Mike Flanagan, Hush is a one-location terror rampage. Flanagan (who also directed Oculus a few years ago) wrote the film with its star victim Kate Siegel, to whom he is also married. Siegel plays Maddie Young, a deaf writer who lives alone in an isolated cabin (classic catnip for evildoers). Yet, even though Maddie is horrifically terrorized, her character is not a passive victim.
Maddie fights back, often ingeniously, against the unnamed, white-masked maniac with a crossbow (John Gallagher Jr., straying far afield from his supernice-guy role on The Newsroom). Like many a homicidal maniac in horror movies, this guy is a sadist who seems to prefer toying with his targets more than the actual kill; he’d prefer to pluck the wings off insects, one by one, instead of squashing them outright.
Hush makes clever use of Maddie’s deafness as part of the plot development, although comparisons with the classic sensory-impairment thriller Wait Until Dark end there. Our modern electronic devices – from smartphones to smoke detectors – are intelligently incorporated into the story. Siegel’s strong screen presence, despite the absence of auditory dialogue, also helps carry the movie. You can almost see the wheels turning inside Maddie’s brain as she tries time after time to outwit her tormentor. Hush has a solid first half before the cat-and-mouse shenanigans begin to seem repetitive and prolonged. Still, at 82 minutes Hush is a concise and well-executed horror nightmare.
Hush (2016)
Directed by: Mike Flanagan
Starring: Kate Siegel, John Gallagher Jr, Michael Trucco, Samantha Sloyan, Emma Graves
Screenplay by: Mike Flanagan
Production Design by: Elizabeth Boller
Cinematography by: James Kniest
Film Editing by: Mike Flanagan
Costume Design by: Lynn Pelzman
Set Decoration by: Jaan Childs
Art Direction by: Seth M. Johnson
Music by: The Newton Brothers
MPAA Rating: R for strong violence/terror and some language.
Distributed by: Netflix
Release Date: March 12, 2016 (SXSW), April 8, 2016 (United States)
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