Silent Heart

Plot

A family of three generations gather over a weekend to say goodbye to Esther (Ghita Nørby) who suffers from an incurable disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and with the help of her husband Poul (Morten Grunwald) has chosen to pursue euthanasia when the weekend is over. But as the end approaches, the mother's decision becomes more and more difficult to handle for the daughters Heidi (Paprika Steen) and Sanne (Danica Curcic), and old conflicts come to the surface.

Cast

Theme

The topic of August's film is euthanasia. The film is a family drama about three generations coming together over a weekend to say goodbye to their wife, mother, mother in law, grandmother and friend.

Production

Silent Heart was filmed over seven weeks on a farm northwest of Kerteminde on Funen.

Release

The film premièred 20 September 2014 at the San Sebastián International Film Festival where it received a 20 minutes standing ovation. It was released theatrically in Denmark 13 November 2014.

Critical response

Film critic Morten Piil in Filmmagasinet Ekko gave the film 5 out of 6 stars and wrote: "All in all, Silent Heart is Bille August's most complete film since The Best Intentions. Jonathan Holland for The Hollywood Reporter wrote positively from San Sebastián that "After the disappointing Night Train to Lisbon, Heart signals a return to form for the former Oscar-winner Bille August, who here explores with practised ease and an alertness the emotional truth of the dynamics of an ordinarily neurotic family in an extraordinary situation. Accessible without being easy, and played to perfection by a superbly directed cast, Heart looks set to beat at festivals and in the European arthouse."

Jay Weissberg for Variety on the other hand wrote that "Silent Heart is a standard-issue tearjerker about a dying matriarch gathering her family around on the weekend she plans to off herself: The only surprise is when the script goes from merely stereotyped to spectacularly silly with a late revelation that would feel idiotic even in a farfetched 1940s meller."