The story follows Kang In-ho (Gong Yoo), a newly arrived teacher who uncovers the horrors hidden within the school’s walls. As he confronts a corrupt system full of complicit silences, In-ho becomes the voice of those who could never defend themselves.
What makes Silenced truly harrowing is not just the explicit abuse, portrayed with sensitivity, without sensationalism, but the overwhelming sense of helplessness: the negligence of institutions, the corruption of justice, and the abandonment of the victims. The film does not aim to entertain but to move, to denounce, and to raise awareness.
Its impact was so powerful that after its release in 2011, Silenced provoked nationwide outrage in South Korea, led to the reopening of the real case, and inspired the “Dogani Law”, which imposed harsher penalties for sexual crimes against minors and people with disabilities.
Silenced is a tough, uncomfortable, yet profoundly necessary film. More than just a drama, it is a testimony, a reminder that cinema can also serve as a weapon for justice and a call for change.
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However, I've since found that the film was the filmmakers' quest for justice based on a real-life example, known as the Gwangju Inhwa School. This whole sordid episode had been written up as a novel of the same title and the film took on the role of loudspeaker to the public. Indeed, the impact of the film on Korean society was like an invisible hand that pushed through reform for regulations that gave rise to ugly events and people showcased in the film.
But the film's also like a mercury needle probing under the skin of society for saturated poison, and behold! found a dark, disgusting wound. The easy answer would be to punish the most apparent perpetrators, then live and forget, live and forget as if something alas has been done -- although truth be told, the real story was more staggering, involving more faculty and administrators, with the history of the school connecting to the crème de la crème of the community, over the span of countless more years.
At the core of it, this film is testimony to the sheer abundance of poverty and its effects on a nameless town or community. If our general mentality is the NIMBY ("not in my backyard") approach, and there is present a sizable class of those unwanted, neglected, and absolutely vulnerable, who ultimately pays the price? Let the question be better phrased - do you care where the garbage goes after it's been picked up?
The film is a mirror on society, offering us a pitiful look at the grotesqueries of our nature. It's not the first, and will not be the last, since recently I found another novel - in the US - that seemed to have been cut from the same cloth: The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead.
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proceed with caution
In my memory, the Crucible/Silenced is by far the hardest film I've ever watched. It is bleak as the dense fog covering the area of Mujin, and the ending is undeniably the most realistic given the context, where corruption goes the distance with money.Initially I went into this film for being an avid fan of Gong Yoo’s work in 2018, and knew it was not going to be a light watch. But it must be emphasised that nothing could prepare the viewer for the harrowing true story and extremely graphic scenes depicting abuse of the children at the school. Even at the time of writing this review, the recollection of the man poking his head above the bathroom stall is the stuff of nightmares.
The performances were praise-worthy and difficult to criticise, the children especially in encapsulating the immense suffering the victims had endured in its most unrelenting form. The silence throughout the film was insufferable, and by no means an accident. Accompanied with dark palettes with barely a stretch of light and the many enclosed spaces in the building, there was never a moment of release for the viewer from start to finish. Every scene is unflinching as it is unsettling, with the deep rooted fear of not knowing what you will see next.
While most now would recognize Gong Yoo for his cameo in Squid Game (same director), many kdrama fans would remember his role in Goblin. In my humble opinion, his appearance as the school teacher remains his strongest and most memorable performance. It was said during his scene with the car, the injuries were not done by make up, and through it his overwhelming emotions were expressed from knowing what happened to the children. His dedication to the role couldn’t go unnoticed in his raw expressions of anger, disbelief and the sheer helplessness of an adult against the myriad of corrupted and disgusting individuals.
With these being said, this isn’t a film I recommend lightheartedly, nor it's one that begs a rewatch. The Crucible/Silenced would linger in your mind many years after only seeing it once. It’s an important work that managed to spread awareness of horrifying events that could take place behind closed doors, especially in institutes that many may view in a good light and hence avoid suspicion. After all, the worst monsters come as wolves in sheep's clothing.
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This review may contain spoilers
Even when knowing what's going to happen... you can't imagine how bad it is.
I seriously felt like I knew what I was getting into but I clearly wasn't. This movie makes you face the worst part of humanity, and doesn't give you a lot of hope. However, I recommend watching it as it will make you realize how much we have to be ready to fight for people who are suffering, because no one else will do it for you.A few random points I'd like to add:
The actors are brilliant, all of them, children included. It was so heart wrenching to watch such horrible things happen to children so realistically. But the worst part was probably the helplessness of the very few adults willing to help. Even some of them who clearly realized something was wrong still didn't act. It really makes you think a lot about how much bravery and strength is needed to go against the status quo.
This story is important. So important that even if the movie was horrifying to watch, I don't regret it. Because these children suffered so much, no one should ignore them. It's the least we can do since clearly we all failed them.
All in all, it's a movie that makes you think about yourself and about society. It's a movie that puts you face to face with real life monsters, and I'm not only talking about the rapists and abusers, but also about those who choose to let them continue their rampage only for the sake of money or other menial things. I hope anyone who watches this movie will find it in themselves to act against such abuse if they are to witness it in the future.
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An exhausting and infuriating film
To be quite fair, I skipped so many parts of this movie, because it was just so unbearable to watch, that I'm not sure I can say if it was good or not, all I can say is that I feel.... unsure and angry and sad and disappointed in humanity.It was a very well-made movie with fantastic acting from the entire cast, especially the children, and I'm happy it created so much anger that it led to change in legislations in South Korea regarding the sexual abuse of children and people with disabilities, but I don't think it needed to put the child actors in a position where they had to film such graphic scenes.
I think the graphic nature completely destroys any rewatch value of the movie, and I'm questioning the need to risk potentially traumatizing these children. There has to be better ways to explore sexual assault in movies, especially of minors, in a way that does not put the actors at any risk.
I hope they had psychological support during the filming process, because no art is worth hurting a child.
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Harrowing and heartwrenching
This was a really really heavy watch, but in the best way; I really felt emotionally invested in the main characters — both the adults who were doing the right thing against all odds, and for the children who we were watching learn to trust people again and actually act (and laugh) like kids should — and in the outcome of the legal process. In the end, it was a really bittersweet and realistic sort of ending, but it was the best I hoped for and I thought it was perfect.The acting was so good for all the characters, but especially the three kids. I could feel their fear, their pain, and their hope in every single one of their scenes.
There were some parts of the story — more side aspects of complacency — that I wanted to see more of because of the moral greyness, but I understand why it wasn't the focus of the movie and I think the movie did just fine without it.
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full of pain drooped it
i watch over 30 mnt i can't complete this film i can't found intersting in anything here it is full of pain..just giving real accident In the school for the deaf About child rape and torture I couldn't bear to watch it
so i dropped it I hate watching children subjected to violence and sexual harassment,.........,.....
If you have watched it in full, give me advice, I may re-decision if it is really worth
.
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Le bruit du silence
Silenced est de ces films qu'on ne regarde qu'une seule fois, mais dont on garde un souvenir glacial.Tiré du roman éponyme de Gong Ji Young et basé sur des faits réels, Silenced est un film coup de poing. Il fait naître en nous un réel mépris et dégoût, tout comme un besoin de révolte et de justice. Certaines scènes peuvent être insoutenables – il est interdit aux moins de 16 ans pour une bonne raison – au point de vouloir en découdre avec les principaux concernés au travers de son écran. Or, c’est également toute la réussite de ce film. Silenced nous plonge dans une tourmente violente et brutale.
Dans mes souvenirs (2016, il me semble), il y avait une chose qui m’avait marqué : les scènes d’abus assez graphiques. Lors de mon re-visionnage, j’ai réalisé que cela avait gardé une trace. En effet, Hwang Dong Hyuk n’épargne personne, encore moins le téléspectateur en le forçant a assister à des scènes violentes et dures. Dégoût. Mépris. Haine. Ça bouillonne. Ce sont des scènes qui dérangent, mais qui servent clairement au film afin de pointer du doigt une réalité trop souvent édulcorée.
Adultes et enfants offrent des performances exceptionnelles qui prennent aux tripes sur toute la durée du film. Gong Yoo dans la peau de Kang In Ho, Jung Yu Mi dans le rôle de Seo Yoo Jin, Kim Hyun Soo en tant que Yeon Doo, Jung In Seo comme Yoo Ri. Et enfin, Baek Su Ho (anciennement Baek Seung Hwan) dans le rôle de Min Soo, prennent aux tripes. Leurs histoires sont différentes et révoltantes. Jang Gwang n’est pas en reste en ayant le rôle du proviseur et de son frère jumeau. Aussi détestable l’un que l’autre, l’acteur tient son rôle avec brio.
Je n'aime pas l'idée de noter le film, parce qu'il est trop complexe pour l'être vraiment, d'autant plus que Silenced est le genre de film qu’on ne met pas entre toutes les mains. Sa réalité dérange tout en pointant du doigt des faits dramatiques et écœurants dont les coupables ne répondent pas toujours. C’est un film qui met en colère et possède un développement solide, un rythme cohérent et une bande-son qui vient accentuer chaque émotion.
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This review may contain spoilers
Un film nécessaire, mais dur à encaisser !
C’est pas juste un “drama” qu’on regarde avec du popcorn. Basé sur une histoire vraie qui s’est déroulé dans les années 2000 dans une école pour enfants sourds, ce film est encore plus poignant et révoltant, ça retourne l’estomac 😢Les acteurs sont ouf, y’a aucun mauvais jeu, tout sonne vrai. Et c’est justement ça qui rend le truc encore plus dur à encaisser.
Y’a des scènes qui sont horribles à regarder. Choquantes. Révoltantes. J'avais la gorge nouée, les poings serrés, et des envies de meurtre qui montaient très fort 😤🔥
C’est clairement pas pour tout le monde. Faut être prêt. C’est pas là pour divertir, mais pour te réveiller.
Je l’ai vu une fois. Et jamais je le reverrai.
Pas parce que c’était mauvais, au contraire. C’est juste que ça m’a mis une claque trop puissante. Un visionnage, et tu restes marqué à vie 🤣.
Pour la note je lui attribut un 9⭐️ pas pour le “plaisir de regarder”...
Mais pour l’importance de ce que ce film dénonce. C’est une histoire qu’il faut voir, qu’il faut connaître, et surtout qu’il faut faire connaître 🫰🏻
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Injustice et long combat
Le film nous montre le long combat d'un prof d'art plastique contre les abus du directeur et des enseignant d'un collège, envers des enfants sourds. Ce film est dur, poignant, émouvant. On comprend que c'est toujours une histoire d'argent et de pouvoir car pour lutter contre des abus sexuels de la part de ces personnes, qui sont respectées dans la ville, ça n'est pas évident. Ils usent de leur pouvoir pour racheter les familles et même ce professeur en question. Heureusement qu'il refuse et qu'il fait tout pour aller jusqu'au bout.Cette histoire est malheureusement arrivée dans la vraie vie. Les acteurs ont tous bien joué, mais je me mets leur place, ça peut être traumatisant... Le film est long mais prenant, et ne laisse pas indifférent à ce fléau.
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Le fait que «Silenced» soit tiré d’une histoire vraie, rend ce film encore plus terrible, déchirant et inhumain. Ce que traversent ces enfants, il n’y a pas de mots pour le décrire, rien qui ne pourrait être assez fort pour l’exprimer. Je m’attendais à ce que cette histoire soit difficile à regarder, mais pas à ce point. J’ai passé les deux heures qu’il a duré à vouloir prendre ses enfants dans mes bras pour les protéger, et vouloir faire payer ceux qui les ont blessés, ainsi que tous ceux qui les ont aidés, directement ou non. J’espère sincèrement que ceux qui ont été victimes de tout ceci vont mieux maintenant, et qu’ils ne sont pas seuls, mais bien entourés. Pour ce qui est du film lui-même, je le conseille vivement ! Oui, il est difficile à voir. Non, je ne le regarderai pas de nouveau. Mais ces enfants méritent que leurs histoires soient connues, et les acteurs, que ce soient ceux connus comme Gong Yoo, ou les enfants, ont tous joués avec brio ! «Silenced» est vraiment un de ces films qui ne peut laisser indifférent !
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*Avis Complet sur mon Blog :*
https://lamagiedeshistoires.wordpress.com/2024/09/24/septembre-2024-en-rafale-dramas-films/
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