Noise

This movie could have been so many things.

It could have been what secrets the town holds for the son who has come back.

It could have been the secrets of the factory fire.

It could have been about the secrets of the father and his previous wife.

It could have been the slow descent of a marriage.

But no, the director/writer teased several ideas, and just tacked on a nonsensical ending that did not resolve any of the questions. This was a complete waste of time. Throw in the fact that the lead actor graduated from the Kneau Reeves/Kristen Stewart acting class, meaning he had the same constipated expression regardless of the scene or emotion he was supposed to have.

I don't normally give such low scores to movies - I try to focus on the positive instead of the negative. And certainly this movie offered solid acting, good production quality and what seemed to be a good script. I was engrossed by the various mysteries which were the subject of the movie. I *almost* enjoyed this movie, but the ending ruined the enjoyment of the rest of the movie because nothing got resolved at the end. There is the build up of these different mysteries, but they literally went no where. There is a rather non-sensical ending which did not address the outstanding questions or wrap up the mysteries in any way. Ultimately, it felt like the time I spent watching the beginning of the movie was a waste. I would love to watch this movie again, with a proper ending!!! So viewer beware - you will get sucked into the suspense of this movie, but IMO it ultimately goes nowhere.

Even watching it at 1.5x speed and skipping 10 seconds every time the movie is boring and draggy. The supposed mystery is ridiculous, the protagonist is a terrible actor and there are a series of scenes of people in the city being hostile that make no sense and are not even explained. One of the worst scripts I've seen in a while, if there ever was a script. I assume that maybe there were more scenes but the movie got so much more boring that they must have cut it because there's a lot of nonsense. All in all, one of the worst movies I've ever seen. Don't waste your time, watch any 1959 Twilight Zone episode that in 25 minutes has more emotion and mystery than this movie pastiche.

As "Noise" (2023 release from Belgium; 90 min.) opens, we are introduced to Matthias and Liv, a young couple with a newborn son. They are moving into the house where Matthias gre up with his dad. His dad is now in a seniors center. Matthias is having a hard time coping with the baby waking him up every night. Then one day, Matthias finds out that his dad was the CEO of a nearby chemical plant, which now stands abandoned. Why? At this point we are 10 min. Into the movie.

Couple of comments: this is a full-ledged production from Flanders, Belgium (the Dutch-speaking side of Belgium). I hail from Flanders, Belgium myself, and when I saw this in the newly added titles of Netflix, I just had to watch it. Alas, this is not a great movie. For that, the story line is simply too thin and scattered. This is not a "mystery" or a "thriller" or even a "psychological drama". It's a hodge-podge of lots of genres but in the end can't decide what it really wants to be. The most interesting thing about the movie is the sound construction, piecing together all kinds of irritating noises, none more so than the baby cries, again and again, and again, but also things like the car wash sounds, a fruit blender, etc. We get the point: Matthias is overwhelmed by noises. The cast features Sallie Harmsen as Liv (she also starred in "Blade Runner 2049").

"Noise" started streaming on Netflix just this weekend. Unless you are from Flanders, Belgium and are simply curious as to what a Flemish movie can do, I don't know that I can recommend this film in good conscience to anyone. Of course don't take my word for it, so check it out and draw your own conclusion.

I keep wondering about the rationale behind Netflix producing films with such weak screenplays. The little intrigue that the film offers quickly evaporates once the second act comes on, and the hallucinatory visions the protagonist (Ward Kerremans) keeps having, lack purpose. The protagonist's wife (Sallie Harmsen) takes the perspective of the audience, trying to make sense of it all - hers is the only performance that I took fair notice of, in this mess. The mystery (or the lack of) is so terribly sketched that I felt it had nothing to achieve, even though the protagonist keeps making such a big, nonsensical fuss. The makers also add a couple of pointless jumpscares. In the end, it just feels like you wholly wasted 90-odd minutes.