It's hard to "review" a movie like "The Look of Silence". You don't really watch it and evaluate it like you do anything else. You bear witness.

I have never been able to write anything about its prequel, "The Act of Killing". I broke my rule of reviewing every movie I watch on here because I just wasn't up to the task. Watching that movie, and "The Look of Silence" to a slightly lesser extent, was like being dosed with heroin and hit with a sledgehammer. The usual "disturbing" movie, documentary or otherwise, has an impact that can be shaken off eventually. With "The Act of Killing", I never really felt it, but I knew it was there. It took something from me. The impact bled through into my day to day life. It wasn't just like a bad dream. It was real.

Here is "The Look of Silence". It gives a different side of the story that "Act of Killing" presented, through the son of survivors of the Indonesian genocide. He learns about the fate of his older brother, killed two years before his birth. Then he confronts some of the killers and their families, though these meetings don't go as you might expect, especially for the son, Adi.

This movie really should be watched alongside "The Act of Killing". Whereas "The Look of Silence" is no less horrible in its descriptions of actual murder, I have a feeling that it is the goodness of Adi and his family you will remember.

******* Minor spoiler warning (nothing major) ******

I just saw The Look of silence at the local art house type theater near my house. The title of this film had several meanings to me. Will touch more on that later tho.

The Look of Silence is a follow up film to The Act Of Killing. The focus of the film is on a man named Adi whose older brother was killed by the Indonesian Komando Aksi death squads during the 1965 Indonesian genocide. This was during the cold war era, therefore the United States government chose to help Indonesia mass murder millions of suspected communists and make profits from the death and corruption that ensued.

Adi's brother Ramli was one such Indonesian that was branded as a communist, therefore the Komando Aksi arrested him and relocated him to a prison camp, from the prison camp he was loaded onto a truck with a bunch of other suspected communists, and driven to Snake River and butchered in horrific form. Ramli was one of the more graphic executions that took place, and many of the death squad leaders still remembered Ramli because of the over the top execution that was done to him. It is really graphic, they not only stabbed him and chopped him up, but they also tossed him into the river to die, when he was crying for help the murderers pulled him back out of the water and cut off his genitals, then he died. A very evil and sadistic way of killing someone.

Adi travels around his village and beyond meeting with the death squad leaders who were indirectly, and directly involved with his brothers death, and confronts them about the past and very cleverly and gently recalls the past to them, and in some cases their children, and force them to remember the uncomfortable past that they so desperately try to forget.

This seems to be very important to Adi and Josh Oppenheimer that the true story of what really happened does not become forgotten, and to inform current and future generations of Indonesians that the narrative that their government has been going by, is a huge lie and full of propaganda to make the killers look like celebrated heroes of the state.

This film is immensely important and the whole world needs to know and make the governments involved take action and own up to the truth. We cannot live in the shadows of tyranny and pretend that it didn't happened.

Back to the name of the film. The look of silence was represented to me through the look on the faces of the killers as Adi recalls the gruesome accounts that they were involved with, and the look on Adi's face when the killers seem to not feel remorse for their actions. However, there was an alternate interpretation of the title for me. As I said, I watched this film at the local movie theater, and never have I seen a film anywhere, at any theater in which the audience did not talk or be disruptive at all. It was literally the audience looking at the film in complete silence. Also when the credits rolled, every single person in the theater stayed in their seats until the credits were over, and then walked out of the theater still in silence. Josh is a damn good director and story teller, and I admire him so much for having the courage to make such a film like this one and The Act Of Killing.

If you care about history, and humanity you should watch this film. If you only have the capacity for Michael Bay films, then you probably aren't mature enough to handle this film.

I give it a 9 out of 10.

'THE LOOK OF SILENCE': Four and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

A companion piece to director Joshua Oppenheimer's 2013 critically acclaimed documentary flick 'THE ACT OF KILLING'. The film centers around one man, who's brother was killed; during the Indonesian killings of 1965 to 1966. Oppenheimer once again directed the movie; which was nominated for an Academy Award, for Best Documentary Feature. I found it to be almost as good, as Oppenheimer's previous feature (which I ranked as one of the best of 2013).

Oppenheimer follows an Indonesian man around, that survived the 1965 genocide; by the name of Adi Rukun. Adi's brother, Ramli, was brutally killed; during the 'communist' purge (as a young boy). Adi now wants to confront Ramli's suspected killers (with Oppenheimer's help). He bravely interviews these men, under the pretense of an eye examiner, and seeks uncomfortable answers; as the viewer awkwardly watches.

The movie is extremely disturbing, and hard to watch; like it's predecessor. It's also very moving, at times, but never truly satisfying; as Adi can never truly get the honest answers he's looking for (and the suspected culprits show no remorse, of any kind). It's yet another masterpiece, from Oppenheimer; but some will feel like it's just an extension of the other film. That didn't bother me though.

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