THE LOOK OF SILENCE (review)

Review by Joshua Gravel

The Look Of Silence is Joshua Oppenheimer’s follow up to his critically acclaimed 2012 documentary, The Act Of Killing.

The first film told the story of the 1965 Indonesian Military coup and the mass slaughter of suspected communists which followed all through the words of the killers themselves who are still holding positions of power to this day.

In The Look Of Silence Oppenheimer focuses on small village optometrist, Adi, whose older brother was killed in the 1965 genocide.

We follow Adi as he researches and deals with how the 1965 genocide affected his family and as Adi actually uses the relationships Oppenheimer had built with those in power to actually confront some of the men responsible for his brother’s death in person.

As with The Act Of Killing, Oppenheimer’s The Look Of Silence is a lyrical meditation on how cruel humanity can be to one another, while also showing how others can survive the physical and emotional abuse and still remain somewhat hopeful.

The documentary weaves different elements and interview subjects together to build up to a series of emotionally tense interactions between Adi and either the men responsible for the killings and their families. While the results are not quite the comeuppance one would wish upon these men after seeing the two films, the stark realization of the confrontation is in itself satisfying. 

I highly recommend seeing The Look Of Silence, especially if you have seen The Act Of Killing and want more of the story. And if this piques your interest in the story as a whole you can check out The Act Of Killing on Netflix before seeing The Look Of Silence.