San Sebastian 2023 Review: A SILENCE Faces Sins of Fathers in Family Social Thriller

Belgian director Joachim Lafosse explores the ramifications of a long-concealed family secret in his eighth feature, A Silence, a narrative that emerges after a quarter-century of quietude. The film is headlined by Daniel Auteuil, known for his notable performance in Jaco van Dormael's The Eighth Day, among various other credits.

The narrative follows the character of Astrid, portrayed with a meticulous amalgam of vulnerability and strength by Emmanuelle Devos, whose life undergoes a tumultuous transformation as her progeny set forth on a quest for justice. Unfolding amidst the deeply entrenched bourgeois milieu, the film delicately unravels the layers of shame, guilt, and silence that serve as the adhesive fabric holding the family in seeming harmony.

The impetus for the film is grounded in real-world occurrences, chiefly drawing from the notorious Hissel affair in Belgium. Victor Hissel, once the legal counsel for two victims of the infamous serial killer and rapist Marc Dutroux, found himself ensnared in scandal upon his incarceration for possession of child pornography. This grim episode propelled filmmaker Lafosse to delve into the somber themes of shame, abuse, and silence.

A Silence unfolds the narrative of a teenager, Raphael (Matthieu Galoux), maneuvering through a life overshadowed by the lauded public persona of his father, while simultaneously grappling with sinister truths nestled within the family domain.

Auteuil delivers a nuanced portrayal of François, a character embodying a man who shrouds the truth to sidestep self-implosion. Lafosse delves critically into silence, not framing it as a crime, but as a manifestation of more profound familial and societal quandaries.

A Silence opens with a visibly distraught Astrid making her way to the police station for an interrogation. The in-medias-res questioning gradually gains sharper contours, hinting at an underlying family tragedy. Lafosse then redirects the narrative lens towards the suburban bourgeois ennui enveloping the Schaar family, with patriarch François assuming the role of a legal counsel for victims entangled in a high-profile case.

The relentless pursuit by journalists, who encamp outside his residence from the break of dawn, forms a constant backdrop. Although the narrative briefly flirts with the tropes of a legal thriller amid the courtroom drama, Lafosse decidedly navigates towards the unfolding domestic drama beneath the Schaar's roof. The skeleton of a 25-year-old secret begins to tumble out of the familial closet, culminating in a climactic confrontation between François and Raphael, topped with a Haneke-esque denouement.

A Silence unfolds primarily as a family drama, morphing into a pseudo-chamber ensemble narrative, with a predilection towards irony rather than suspense under the adept direction of Lafosse, who orchestrates the cinematic tableau with the finesse of a social thriller, in concert with director of photography Jean François Hensgens.

The recurring motif of silence reverberates through the narrative, alluding to the pervasive and endemic issue of child abuse, explored both overtly and covertly within the film's framework. While Lafosse acknowledges the inciting influence of the Victor Hissel events, he ventures beyond the immediate, addressing a broader issue that has lingered within the francophone sphere.

In recent times, the elites of France have confronted a reckoning for rampant sexual abuse and a culture of silence that has perpetuated child abuse, often occurring within the familial sphere. Back in the 70s, there were even instances of calls for decriminalizing paedophilia in France, underscored by a petition that bore the signatures of numerous luminaries.

Meanwhile, across the Channel in the UK, public figure and erstwhile nation's darling, Jimmy Saville, was permitted to exploit more than 500 children, his reprehensible acts shrouded by his celebrity status and connections within the upper strata of British society.

The phrase “abuse in plain sight” has taken on a chilling resonance, now forming the crux of a BBC miniseries The Reckoning, as some of the abuse transpired within BBC premises, a venue where the public broadcaster failed to intervene. Moreover, the issue of child sexual abuse has been thrust once again into the limelight through the harrowing revelations surrounding the Epstein case.

Lafosse proceeds to portray a burgeoning younger generation rallying not only against the abuse and the perpetrator, but also against a culture that quietly endured this approach, evading the painful task of exposing festering wounds to public scrutiny. A Silence not only captures the non-verbal reactions through the actions of Raphael, but also manifests a verbal stance from his sister, who exerts pressure on their mother.

The director narrows his focus on an affluent bourgeois family, utilizing the family as a fundamental societal unit, to delve into a long-concealed secret and scrutinize the prevailing culture of silence and complacency and the domination of toxic patriarchalism.

Read more about the film at the official San Sebastian International Film Festival site.