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Pope chats with Scorsese, tells director he read 'Silence'

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I would hope he has read it, as it is considered quite an important work by Shusaku Endo, who was himself a Catholic.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I would love to see this film.

My only disappointment was that it was filmed in Taiwan. Nothing against Taiwan at all, lovely country, but I am a stickler for filming movies on location. Hence, one of my big dislikes of "The Last Samurai" which wasn't filmed in Japan either.

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oldman_13, some of the most evocative scenes in The Last Samurai were filmed up at that wonderful old temple Engyoji on Shosha San in Himeji.

Maria, even if considered important among intellectuals, Silence is more about betrayal and the death of religion in the face of torture and pain. God does not answer you in need. It questions the deepest faith, and offers no answers, so for this reason I was thinking the Pope probably would have found the book testing at least, and the film potentially challenging, depending on how Scorcese has played it.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

You can get the 1971 version, "Chinmoku", by Shinoda Masahiro whose direction is unlikely to be improved upon by Scorsese.

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Damn, really want to see this movie

1 ( +1 / -0 )

"Silence is more about betrayal and the death of religion in the face of torture and pain. God does not answer you in need." ............................................................................................................. I read "Silence" more than 30 years ago and recommend it, but disagree with the writer above. In my opinion, the theme wasn't betrayal, but the meaning of martyrdom. Without spoiling the movie or novel, you might say this: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his faith for his friends." If I were a religious person, I would say that "God" answered him in his need.

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Too bad he filmed it in Taiwan. I am guessing it was financed by a Taiwanese. Makes more sense than the official explanation (that Taiwan is quieter and more rural than Japan - even Kyushu where this likely took place?).

I hope he at least used Japanese actors. The Chinese pretending to be Japanese were really distracting from the story in Sayuri.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

It's a film and they are actors. Imagine if some rumour said one was gay? Or filmed on a set and not location? Just wondering, why is this story headline news?

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Maria: "I would hope he has read it, as it is considered quite an important work by Shusaku Endo, who was himself a Catholic."

Why would you even doubt it? I don't think you could make the film without having read it, and it sound like he's taken quite a long time to make it good.

I've read the book twice and love it. I like Endo's other works as well, though following Silence with them made them seem a little less great than they likely are (and with repetition of the central theme of Silence). I think it's going to be great, though I'm a little less than thrilled with the Western cast (Liam Neeson aside). Oh well, I'm sure it's going to be great.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

I hope the movie will soon play in Finland also.

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It's a film and they are actors. Imagine if some rumour said one was gay?

You are missing the point. The point is that the Chinese actresses in Sayuri spoke heavily accented Japanese and used Chinese mannerisms, which completely broke character for anyone familiar with Japan. Many leading men are gay, but it's not that difficult to act "not gay." I doubt Chinese actors will be convincing Japanese, except to audiences with no familiarity with Japan.

So far as location, yes it matters. Kyushu is a lovely place, and since the story is set there, it would have been a great way for the world to learn about it. However, the setting won't spoil the movie - it's just a sad loss for Kyushu.

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commanteer: Too bad he filmed it in Taiwan. I am guessing it was financed by a Taiwanese.

Yes, kind of.

http://variety.com/2015/film/asia/martin-scorsese-silence-to-wrap-in-taiwan-1201487399/

... While the book is set in 17th century Japan, Scorsese located the production in Taiwan, following an introduction by Ang Lee. It was entirely shot in the territory with various locations in Taipei (Yangmingshan, CMPC Studio and the Beitou area), as well as Taichung and Hualien. ... “Silence” received subsidy and production support from the Taipei City Government and Taipei Film Commission, and was partly financed by Catchplay, which is the film’s distributor in Taiwan. ...

wikipedia: Ang Lee OBS is a Taiwanese-born film director, screenwriter and producer.

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The Chinese pretending to be Japanese

It's called 'acting', because, you know, they are actors. Aside from acting skills, they were chosen partly for ability in English, it was disclosed at the time. Too few equivalents were available in Japan.

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