Speak No Evil 4K 2024

I would describe Speak No Evil, which I added to my watch list on the advice of psychologist Veronika Stepanova, as primarily a psychological thriller. In fact, “speak no evil” is part of a proverb that says, “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.” The proverb is personified by three “wise” monkeys, one of which has covered its eyes, the second its ears, and the third its mouth, effectively deactivating its senses. This proverb is often used sarcastically to describe people who prefer to remain silent and ignore inappropriate behavior out of fear and cowardice, passing it off as non-confrontational and polite. I would make the slogan of the film “There is a limit to politeness.” The film clearly demonstrates a situation where good manners play a cruel joke on people.

Speak No Evil is about trusting your instincts and speaking up about what you don't like from the very beginning, without fear of being considered rude or violating accepted social norms. Tolerance and the taboo of calling things by their proper names have gone too far in modern society. To the point that it can threaten the integrity of the individual and even life itself. After all, God forbid you offend anyone, express your point of view directly, or be frank, even if it is justified and caused by some acute situation. People themselves suppress themselves with conventions and impose a ban on the expression of feelings and emotions. As a result, no one can say no when they don't want something, cannot fight back against a scoundrel, cannot follow their desires, putting themselves first, rather than what is expected of them. Living by the laws of an overly civilized society, people almost completely lose their instinct for self-preservation. But when you initially “bare your teeth” and express dissatisfaction, you let the other side know that it's not worth messing with you.

Patrick (Paddy), James McAvoy's charismatic hero, embodies primitive freedom and spontaneity, and this is what attracts casual acquaintances who lack the courage to behave this way themselves. Some will see him as a bully who invades personal space. To me, Paddy seems like an extremely relaxed person, unbound by any rules, who deeply doesn't care what others think of him.

My personal life experience shows that getting too close to people you don't know very well often ends badly. Your kindness, sympathy, and politeness can be interpreted as an invitation to do whatever they want. You need to break up with such people once and for all, resolutely blocking them. There is no other way, because they do not understand boundaries. You should completely ignore such people as soon as you sense something is wrong.

McAvoy plays Karabas Barabas perfectly, bullying modern poor Pinocchios, who seem to have no problem snapping his nose or tying him to a chair by his beard. But where are we, we don't have the guts... And they weren't taught that way... Only everyday life. We no longer hunt mammoths, but fight or flight mode was originally built into us by nature as a mechanism that allowed humanity to survive for centuries. It is now customary to fight anxiety, but if you think about it, it's not such a bad thing. And if something is bothering you, listen to yourself and draw conclusions.