Speak No Evil 2022 vs 2024. 

Recently, my feed on FB began to be full of reviews for Speak No Evil 2024, and I, as a fan of horror and psychological dramas, could not pass by. But this film has a prequel, Speak No Evil, 2022.

Which Speak No Evil film is better? In this article, I share my review of both versions. 

Speak No Evil 2022 review.

One day, the director of the film Speak No Evil, 2022, Christian Tafdrup was vacationing with his wife in Italy, where he met another married couple from Holland. The sun, wine, and good mood- tourists became friends. After returning home to Denmark, the director received an invitation from the family to visit them in Holland. Christian Tafdrup decided not to go. But the heroes of his film, the plot that exactly coincides with this story, went to Holland and fell into a trap.

What a big mistake.

For me, Speak No Evil (2022) is a shocking film. It is one of those rare breeds of excellent films that are hard to recommend to everyone.

In this film, terrible things happen to good people. In The Strangers (2007), the smug answer to the question ‘Why are you doing this to us?’ was ‘Because we could.’ Then, in this film, the answer is even more terrible: ‘Because you let us.’

The most terrible thing in the film is not even the violence itself (formally, it starts 15 minutes before the end) but how easily other people can manipulate us. The ‘strange couple’ from Holland does exactly two things: they intrude into personal space (like going into the bathroom to pee while guests are brushing their teeth) and blame the guests (standard behavior of an abuser). 

While watching the film, you will most likely think, “Are the heroes so frail and worthless that they allowed this to happen to themselves?” But I can tell you for sure that this can happen to anyone. It depends on the situation and how long the criminals will break your psyche.

This Danish thriller has an impressive and realistic horror ending. Some horrors frighten you for a moment, making your heart jump out of your chest, but after a minute, the shock passes. Some penetrate deep into the brain, stirring up the psyche and emotions, leaving memories of what was experienced for a long time. I can say that the film’s ending is memorable and is unlikely to ever fade from my head. 

The heroes who came to visit should be treated primarily from the point of view of the collective image of a family living by the rules and norms of social society, fearing condemnation from others. They have to bend to the opinions of others, put a smile on their faces, and create the impression of happy people.

Then, these people find themselves in a situation where they need to think for themselves and make decisions. This film clearly shows the lack of instinct for self-preservation and the shifting of responsibility to others. It also highlights a deficiency in trust between partners. In two situations, when the family could leave, the second spouse did not find out the reason for the imminent departure.

My thoughts.

For me, this film is primarily about the problem of forced helplessness and is simply a superb manipulation manual. Now, I want to share my observations briefly:

1. The Danes are a good family that is used to living comfortably. And safety seems quite natural to them. The Dutch family are “predators” with sharp instincts.
2. Our psyche is designed so that if we fulfill a small request, it will be difficult to refuse a big request. So, from the film’s beginning, the villain’s family probes the personal boundaries of their victims.
3. This film is like a philosophical parable – the harder it is for me to say no, the more everyone wants to eat me.
4. By the way, such obedience is often a tribute to upbringing. Many of us, myself included, grew up with parents who used guilt and shame to keep us in line (like, good girls just don’t act that way). Or we received rewards for good socially approved behavior. Many still prefer to be convenient and good rather than to become bad.
5. Towards the film’s end, Bjorn brushes his teeth, and Patrick comes in and feeds in front of him. This scene shows us what villains know for sure: that the good couple is in their trap. The Danish couple’s will and subjectivity are trampled after just a couple of days. But the movie speeds things up; in real life, it could take a year or even longer for a tormentor to decide to let the victim go or die finally.
6. Well, the daughter’s cut-off tongue is a story about how the future generation of white Europeans is deprived of their voices. In essence, this film is deep social criticism and an expression of Europeans’ fears.

Speak No Evil 2024 review.

The American-British remake of James Watkins was released in 2024. However, the director diluted the film slightly with Hollywood details and changed the plot. In the 2024 version, new details appear in the plot.

The main characters have problems in their marriage.

In American versions, Ben and Louise do not live very smoothly together. There is a real crisis in their family. The wife blames her husband for the fact that she packed up and left America for England after him, leaving everything. And she starts a virtual affair.

Against their background, Paddy and Clara seem like the happiest family. They even look at each other with adoration and constantly hug. And this brings a very interesting contrast to the film.-

Kids are active.

In the original, the kids accepted their sad fate. In the remake, Ant and Agnes are unwilling to give up so easily. Ant looks for a way to tell his friend what’s happening, and he eventually succeeds. On the other hand, Agnes finds a way to communicate the truth to her parents.

Villains are real people with real goals.

In the 2024 film, the Bad couple doesn’t want to lose the livelihood they get from silly guest couples.- 

Ending.

There’s nothing to say here, but you’ll understand if you’ve watched both films. The Danish movie hits the viewer over the head with its meaning. The American remake is more about the coordinated work of adults and children in the face of danger and how important it is to react in time.

Unfortunately, new details have a minimal impact on the plot.

My thoughts.

In my opinion, this film does not create the desired effect. The heroes’ lives in Paddy and Chiara’s house are assumed to be terribly uncomfortable. But nothing terrifying happens: all the actions of the cheeky owners are smoothed out in Hollywood style.

With the move to Hollywood, this story inevitably loses all its halftones. In the original source, it is critically important that the heroes are Danish: cold Scandinavians bored in their perfectly built modern cities. The language barrier is also significant. Sometimes, the Dutch family switches from English to their native Dutch, and the anxiety intensifies from not knowing what they are talking about at these moments. The viewer feels that he can never fully understand what is happening.

The remake, having lost all its psychological depth, looks simply comical. And this is actually its main advantage. The film works great as a black cringe comedy. For the most part, McAvoy is to thank for this. He doesn’t even try to make his character at least somewhat believable; he smiles sarcastically, grunts comically, and behaves like a villain from a pulp novel by the end. Once you forgive the film for its incredible superficiality and stop expecting a dark thriller to start somewhere around the second hour, you suddenly discover that it is easy to enjoy.

Which Speak No Evil film is better?

I think these two films can be compared with one phrase – while Europeans talk about violence, Americans just make money.

It’s been a well-known fact for ages that Americans aren’t big fans of foreign films, particularly when they have to read subtitles. Therefore, successful European films are often remade with American actors and a higher budget. As a rule, the results are more spectacular but much more primitive.

Speak No Evil is exactly such a case. The Danish version is a kind of psychological art house—measured, calm, and scary. It really nailed me.

Paradoxically, the American film is a very bad and a brilliant adaptation. It does not convey the essence of the original at all: it forgets about the biblical subtexts and social criticism and is unable to show real people for whom one can worry. But at the same time, it amazingly captures how filmmakers can transfer this plot to Hollywood soil. It turns a creepy thriller into an expressive, out-of-touch comedy slasher. The finale is the film’s best part and Watkins’ most accurate find. The director understands perfectly well that the American heroes will not sit quietly like modest Danes. So, in the end, Tom and Jerry, with an 18+ rating, begins.

Oddly enough, American simplification and reduction of all meanings to money works better than these very meanings. The result speaks for itself. Where the Danes collected $370,000, the Americans earned more than $75 million on the same story.

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Final words.

Ultimately, I want to note that the Danish version of 2022 is forever in my collection of films I want to rewatch.

Have you watched any of these films? Did you like it?

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