Movie review: 'Speak No Evil' a terrifying couples retreat

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 10 (UPI) -- Speak No Evil, in theaters Friday, is one intense thriller. Social pressures turn to true horrors, but both are equally terrifying.

In this remake of the 2022 Danish film, Ben (Scoot McNairy) and Louise (Mackenzie Davis) meet Paddy (James McAvoy) and Ciara (Aisling Franciosi) on vacation in Italy. After the trip, Paddy invites the family to his farm.

The title is Speak No Evil, so it's not a spoiler to suggest Paddy and Ciara have nefarious intentions. Their initial manipulations are unsettling enough to warrant an entire horror movie.

Paddy is aggressive and judgmental in Italy, especially when Louise reveals she is a vegetarian. He pressures Ben and Louise to let their daughter, Agnes (Alix West Lefler), ride on his Vespa so they can't say no, and scares off an annoying Dutch couple with brash bathroom talk.

This behavior only escalates when Ben, Louise and Agnes are captive on Paddy and Ciara's farm. Their son, Ant (Dan Hough), tries to warn Agnes, but Ant can't talk, so he literally can't speak about the evil.

There are signs of abuse, like bruises on Ciara's body and scars on Ant's. Paddy's sense of humor is abusive, too, joking about beating Ant or having a babysitter deported.

Paddy and Ciara share too much about their sex life. The visit is already uncomfortable before it transitions into outright horror.

Louise even tries to leave when Paddy and Ciara go too far, but she and Ben keep succumbing to social pressures to repair their friendship. The movie would be much shorter if they had just left when it made sense to leave.

Writer-director James Watkins maintains the sense of unease throughout Ben and Louise's stay at the farm. Whenever an uncomfortable incident is resolved, Paddy makes it weird again.

Watkins stresses all the psychological pressures Paddy and Ciara put on Ben and Louise. It's psychological torture even before it becomes full-on horror.

There is a theme that parents should really listen to children better. Ben dismisses Agnes for her attachment to a stuffed animal, and everyone dismisses Ant because he can't speak, but the kids are the first to notice the warning signs.

The movie's climax pays off those psychological seeds in an intense and brutal assault. However, the relatable social pressures leading up to that will be scary enough for most audiences.

Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.