Review of Soft & Quiet (2022) by Panther49 — 04 Nov 2022

A film critic on RT stated that this gave her a panic attack, so I had to watch it. I went in expecting something gruesome and difficult to stomach, given the praise from critics, but overall it was a "meh" experience.

The most ironic thing about this movie is that its existence proves some of the points it attempts to condemn: that minorities in America are given special treatment and whites are demonized. I'll address this last, however.

Noting the anti-feminist remarks by the main characters, their support for the nuclear family, the on-the-nose commentary regarding conservative strawman arguments, and the fact that it is tactfully released for streaming four days before US election day, I have to call this what it is: liberal propaganda. And we all know who it's targeting: conservatives. Its liberal, misinformed director, Beth de Araújo, states this rather clearly in an interview: "The idea is traditional women, traditional family models, which is the guise for saying, ‘We want strong families,’ meaning ‘We need Aryan families, Aryan Christian families." Ah, here we go again, where every conservative idea is a dog-whistle; every ideal is some thinly veiled racism. Beth seems to be ignoring conservative minorities that have traditional values when making statements like these. Maybe if you're the one that keeps hearing the dog whistle, you are the dog.

The film succeeds in maintaining interest for at least the first 45 minutes, though. Its single-shot feel is highly effective until its characters begin acting just completely stupid in every action. So, for the acting and presentation I'll give the movie a few points and will rate it on the merit of filmmaking, not for its message.

To address the irony of this movie, let's imagine instead a movie of black supremacist commies committing acts of violence against asians. Something that happens statistically at higher rates and is therefore more realistic - but that would be racist, wouldn't it? You couldn't release a movie like that four days before US midterms election and you know it. So instead you affirm the beliefs of white conservatives: that we are condemned and viewed as racist just for existing. Great.

If you're a liberal that is afraid of white people, hate yourself, and hate whites, you will love this movie. It will be "real" and "scary" to you. But the strong points of the movie (acting/pacing) don't offset the propaganda at play.