The Secret Life of Words
by Isabel Coixet
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DVD details
Actor: Danny Cunningham, Javier Cámara, Sarah Polley, Sverre Anker Ousdal, Tim RobbinsDirector: Isabel Coixet
Brand: NBC Universal
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 115 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2007-05-08
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Universal Studios
DVD Reviews of The Secret Life of Words
DVD Review: Compelling Claustrophobic Drama
Summary: 5 Stars
"Sarah Polley gives a wonderfully searching performance, as a woman in a state of extreme isolation, in "The Secret Life of Words," a compellingly claustrophobic drama set mostly aboard an oil rig. This film tackles its big theme -- silence as a defense against tragedy -- with delicacy, sympathy and originality, sans sentimentality." Jonathan Holland
This film grabbed me and cut to my core. Immediately this young woman played by Sarah Polley spoke to me. This is an actress who can display with a flick of her hair and a non expression that something has gone terribly wrong and will never be right again. Hanna as she is known, is deaf, she lives alone, she works in a factory and has not had a sick day or a day off in 4 years. We know she eats white rice, chicken nuggets and half an apple for every meal. She has a collection of almond scented soap in her bathroom, and she uses a new bar everytime she washes her hands. This is all we know. She is summoned to her supervisor's office and told she must take a 4 week vacation. Her non-speech and work ethic gives her fellow workers a case of nerves, she must at least act human.
Hanna goes to the coast of Northern Ireland and while eating dinner one evening she overhears a conversation that changes her life. An oil rig has had a fire, and there is a great need for a nurse to care for a burned man. She volunteers for the duty and is flown by helicopter to the oil rig.
Hanna meets her patient, Josef, played by Tim Robbins. He has corneal burns and cannot see, leg fractures and burns on his body and face, but he remains intelligent and self-deprecating. He obtained his burns by trying to save someone else. The fact is that what Hanna and Josef don't say is sometime's more significant than what they do say. Hanna maintains her stalwart composure and does not give anything away. Little by little their relationship develops and Hanna begins to open her heart and secrets, as does Josef. On one day, Hanna discloses her shattering past. Josef gathers her in his arms, and this scene is more exqisite than words can express.
The rest of the small crew on the rig are loners as is Hanna. They all have their stories and the chef is the most telling. Hanna discovers that food should be tasted and enjoyed. A scene with Hanna, sitting on the stairs, devouring the rest of Josef's meal will live on. There is a sharing of respect, and Hanna has a family of sorts.
The trauma of both of these characters is lessened by their meeting. Hanna helps Josef heal and Josef helps Hanna with her emotional recovery. Josef has bones that mend and Hanna has a life opened to the world. The time comes when Josef needs more expert care, and they are both helicoptered off the rig to the city. "Hanna, Hanna,' we hear Josef yell as he is lifted into the ambulance. "Hanna,Hanna".
The soundtrack to the film is exquisite. From Clem Snide to David Byrne to Tom Waits and to Paolo Conte. Each song has its place and link the narrative as needed. It is a sound track to be played over and over again.
"Instead of being a visionary film that shows us how people behave when they have been tremendously damaged, this becomes an explanatory film that tells us that its characters have been damaged, and need love to heal them. This may or may not be true, but it's definitely a truism, and it dissolves at least some of the picture's potency and mystery into cliché." Emily Taylor
We often hear without words, and we understand through facial changes what someone is thinking. This film is the ultimate in communication without words, and when words are spoken, each of them evokes a distinct memory.
Highly Recommended. prisrob 05-24-08
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Description of The Secret Life of Words
Academy Award winner Tim Robbins stars in this compelling film from Pedro Almodovar, the renowned director of Volver and Talk to Her. Powerfully acted and critically acclaimed, The Secret Life of Words is a moving story about discovering love and hope when least expected. A wounded oil worker forms an unlikely and emotional relationship with a nurse based on his need to divulge the secrets of his past and her mysterious silence about her own identity. Jack Mathews of the New York Daily News calls it "remarkably compelling...one you won't soon forget." Starring: Sarah Polley, Tim Robbins, Javier Camara, Eddie Marsan, Steven Mackintosh, Julie Christie, Sverre Anker Ousdal Directed by: Isabel CoixetBestsellers in DVD
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