Director: François Girard (The Red Violin, Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould)
Writer: Alessandro Baricco (novel), François Girard, Michael Golding
Producers: Niv Fichman, Nadine Luque, Domenico Procacci, Sonoko Sakai
Starring: Keira Knightley, Alfred Molina, Michael Pitt, Koji Yakusho, Sei Ashina, Mark Rendall
MPAA Rating: R
Running time: 107 min

Canadian film connoisseurs may recall one of François Girard’s early films, an experimental biopic titled Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould. Others may recall another more recent and much more popular, if more straightforward film, The Red Violin which Girard co-wrote with the Canadian institution that is Don McKellar. Nearly ten years since that film, Girard returned to directing and last year he delivered what is only his third full feature film (for some reason, I had an impression that his style had developed over decades of work), a romance titled Silk.

Adapted from Alessandro Baricco’s novel, it’s is the story of Hervé Joncour (Michael Pitt), a happily married soldier turned silkworm smuggler who, while on a trip to Japan, falls in love with a mysterious Japanese woman. The entire running time of the film is comprised of Joncour’s three trips to Japan and his dealings with his ailing wife played by Keira Knightley.

It’s a straightforward, simple story and though that is typically a good thing, in this case it’s one of the problems plaguing Girard’s film. With its lack of dialog and nearly immeasurable amounts of action the film relies primarily on its leads to tell the story in glances, small actions and pure passion and unfortunately, neither Michael Pitt nor Keira Knightley live up to their requirements. I’m rather surprised that such young actors were cast in these roles which would have been much more effective had they been played by more mature actors and though Pitt and Knightley give it their best shot, it’s simply not enough to keep the story afloat. It’s nearly painful to see them interact; there’s no passion or chemistry and when the entire film, and particularly the closing scene which carries the essence of the story, relies on a love between two characters that simply isn’t there on-screen, watching this seems pointless.

Although the lead performances don’t really work, the film does have a number of memorable supporting characters starting with Alfred Molina as Baldabiou, the silk trader who hires Joncour to travel to Japan. He’s funny, charming and crass rolled into one; the kind of role I love to see Molina in. Also worth mentioning are Sei Ashina, the Japanese girl known simply as “The Girl” with whom Joncour falls in love. She displays more passion and eroticism in her 10 minutes of speechless screen time than Keira Knightley manages in her part as the lead. And what sort of Canadian film fan would I be if I didn’t mention Callum Keith Rennie making a small yet memorable appearance as a trader that Joncour meets in Japan? True, Rennie is actually English but he’s a regular in Canadian television and film.

Silk is not a bad film. It’s beautifully and carefully crafted and shot, creating it’s own quiet pace and moments of pure lust and eroticism that are likely to make viewers a little flushed, but it does suffer from the unfortunate miscasting of two young, talented leads (there is bound to be debate as to the extent of Knightley’s talent) who simply don’t work as a pairing. It’s sad to see such a gorgeous film go to waste but when the story relies so heavily on a romance that is non-existent, it’s difficult to find footing on which to recommend it.

If you’re looking for a restrained period type of romance, I recommend 2006’s The Painted Veil which deals with some of the same romantic themes with equally gorgeous visuals but with bountiful chemistry and passion.

Links:
IMDb profile
Official Site
Flixster Profile for Silk