Mirtina tyla (2007) Online

If you have nightmares easily, I suggest staying away from this film: it's pure nightmare fuel. If you have an active imagination, you could have trouble sleeping with the film's imagery burned into the back of your eyeballs.

The story's intriguing enough. There just aren't enough horror films these days about menacing old ventriloquist ladies that are buried with their creepy dolls, who have come back from the dead to seek vengeance on the families that put her in the grave, by tearing out their tongues. The atmosphere is heavy, the creepy music is provided by SAW'S Charlie Clouser, the colors are washed out, and the sets are surreal.

Many will dismiss it as a formulaic, clichéd horror film. The SAW creators, who are huge horror fans, have fun making their own version of the American horror film by throwing in plenty of classic tropes such as the wise-cracking detective (Donnie Wahlberg) and the crazy old lady that knows more than she should.

I was pleased that the film didn't shy away from gore: it wasn't gratuitous, but it did enhance the horror. Most ghost stories tend to be separate from the gore flicks (I'm a fan of both), but I always enjoy seeing them combined. Another aspect that was interesting was the "silence" mode that signaled the presence of evil.

It's got plenty of horror elements to provide scares: aged film, folk tales, singing children, antique furniture, voice recordings fading out, flickering lights, dead loved ones beckoning from beyond the grave, photographs of dead families, cackling old women, wide-eyed dolls, billowing curtains, plenty of thunder and lightning, open caskets, dank crawlspaces, and a pervading sense of evil throughout.

Critics won't dig it, but I've shown it to two groups of friends and the majority were terrified and claimed it to be one of the scariest movies they'd seen. If you're a fan of atmospheric horror that aims to creep you to the bone, you should be more than pleased.

Firstly, the story isn't bad at all, although it'll hardly win any awards. It's pretty difficult for horror movies to continually be original, and this certainly has some moments in it. The villain seems to have some originality; it's not some Chucky imitation. The story lacks depth, and the characters aren't fleshed out at all. The real point of this movie is to be a horror film and nothing more. After the first few (poor) scenes, this movie does one of two things: keep you waiting to jump or trying to make you jump. From the rest of the audience's reactions, I'd say it did a pretty good job at that.

The acting was nothing to write home about, but for this genre, it's more good than bad.

Overall, I would say this a horror movie that deserves a trip to the theater. Compared to many of the sad horror attempts that come out, this isn't too terrible. And it doesn't rely on an abundance of gore like many others do.

I thought the age of the horror movie was coming to an end. Occasionally there are a few gems (The Descent was excellent)but for the most part horror has been replaced by torture porn (saw, saw 2, saw 3, The Hills Have Eyes, and especially Hostel). Dead Silence has thankfully come to show us that Hollywood can still make a scary picture.

This movie is a throwback to the golden age of horror films. This is a Williams Castle sort of movie... a Vincent Price sort of movie. The filmmakers realized that all a horror movie actually has to do is be scary... and that is exactly what this movie is.

Atmosphere, jumps, startles, and eerie dolls. This movie is creepy as hell.

A little note though... don't go into this film with the attitude that it will suck... and don't pick it apart bit by bit. Just sit back and enjoy. The movie wants to to take you on a ride. You should just strap in and feel the terror that is Dead Silence.

"Dead Silence" is a movie that I had been highly anticipating ever since I saw the trailer for it. I just got back from seeing it and I wasn't disappointed at all. The film follows Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten), who, after receiving a mysterious puppet, returns home to find his wife, Lisa (Laura Regan) murdered. With a detective (Donnie Wahlberg) convinced he is the murderer, Jamie returns to his childhood town of Raven's Fair, where a legendary ghost story is told. The story is about a woman named Mary Shaw, a ventriloquist who was murdered after being suspected of murder. She was buried with her massive amount of dolls and puppets as well. After her death, it seems she has been taking revenge on the townspeople, when numerous families are found dead with their tongues missing. Jamie takes it upon himself to solve the legend and curse before he becomes the next victim.

Directed/co-written by James Wan and written by Leigh Whannell, the men who brought us the successful "Saw" series, are also behind this splendidly spooky horror film. Originality is a hard thing to find in the horror genre these days, but this film manages to sluff off most of the typical horror set-ups and create an interesting and compelling story. This is quite a turn around from the "Saw" franchise, which, while it is a good series, has become more of a gore fest than anything. On the other hand, "Dead Silence" is a supernatural horror film with a very well written story. Character development is strong, and the acting helps that out as well, which is always a plus. Ryan Kwanten, an Australian actor, plays the lead role and is very believable. Donnie Wahlberg (of "Saw II" and "Saw III") plays a skeptical detective, and Amber Valetta ("What Lies Beneath") plays Jamie's new stepmother. All of the acting was really believable, I didn't see any below-average performing here.

Puppets and ventriloquism are main themes in the plot, which might sound a little clichéd. I suppose it is, puppets and dolls have become almost a joke in the genre because they are so over-used (as well as creepy little children, among other things), but since they are in the core basis of the plot, they actually come off as being scary. People who have that fear of dolls and/or puppets would be advised to steer clear of this film. There is some great sets in the film as well. The entire town of Raven's Fair has a heavily Gothic tone to it, almost to the point of complete surrealism. The sets are spooky and appropriately so, because it really adds the atmosphere of the movie. The villain/ghostly ventriloquist Mary Shaw, was actually quite terrifying. Her makeup effects made her one creepy looking woman. As for the gore, those expecting anything close to the over-abundance of violence in the "Saw" films will be disappointed. This film doesn't contain much gore - it has a little, but it doesn't use typical violence and graphic gore to get some scares out of the audience. I loved the way the movie ended as well. It's a twist-ending, but don't let that put you off - it works well with the rest of the movie, it's not one of those "bad movie twists". It was very unexpected and very well-written.

Overall, "Dead Silence" is a refreshing, semi-unique horror movie. The storyline is original enough, and the creepy themes and atmospheric setting add to its overall effect. Don't expect a gore fest though, because the violence is pretty tame compared to what you'd see in the "Saw" films. If you like James Wan and Leigh Whannell's work, I'd really recommend seeing this - it's a pleasant change from your typical horror films, and a nice change of pace from their previous work. It has a few flaws here and there, but it's such an enjoyable movie that all of that is forgivable in the end. Very refreshing. 9/10.

Story about Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten) whose wife is killed--her tongue ripped out of her mouth--although there was only a ventriloquist's dummy in the house. Detective Jim Lipton (Donnie Wahlberg) thinks Jamie is as guilty as hell...but he didn't do it. He traces it back to his home town and a dead lady ventriloquist named Mary Shaw and her creepy dummies.

This movie rightfully opens with the old Universal logo used in the 1930s. It fits--this is not a blood and guts movie. Heck it barely warrants an R rating! There's no nudity, sex, swearing and all the violence happens off screen. The views of the dead people--which are pretty gruesome--probably gave it the R.

This is a good solid horror film. It has some quiet creepy chills (especially at the beginning with the dummy on the bed) that really work on you--especially if you find dummies downright unsettling (like I do). There are some "jump" shocks with things leaping out at you--but not much. It has great music, nice direction (love how the maps become real) and has some truly eerie settings. The acting won't win any awards but it's pretty solid. Kwanten is good as the lead and Wahlberg has a few nice and purposefully funny moments in his role. It all leads up to a climax (on a dark and stormy night no less) and a final twist that works just great--even though it doesn't make a lot of sense. This is for those horror viewers that don't need blood and guts shoved in their face to enjoy a movie. I give it a 7.

Best line: "Who's the dummy now?"

James Wan & Leigh Whannell are masterminds in this gender especially when it comes to the twist in the end. I liked the Saw films because of the twist in the end. Saw had more gore less thrill but Dead Silence was the opposite it had more thrill less gore which was more of my type of film. The movie was emotionally & psychologically thrilling and was made so dark & sinister that really did suit the mood for the film. It's been a long time since I saw a movie this scary e.g. Jaws & IT. I don't think there ever has been a horror film about dummies but there was a Goosebumps episode called "Night of the Living Dummy" which was rather funny than scary so this film was quite different. I can't explain how horrifying it was, definitely the kind of movie that made my heart beat faster and hold the arms of the chair tight throughout the whole film. I prefer eerie & frighting scenes in a horror movie rather than violence & gore because the main aim of horror genre is to scare. The ending was the icing on the cake and when I left the cinema hall I was saying to myself "Wow! What an awesome movie" It had one of the best twist I ever seen in film history. Overall in my opinion Dead Silence is one of the best horror films ever and I liked it better then Saw. I also noticed the Jigsaw puppet in the scene where there was a room full of puppets and a clown puppet on a chair. It was on the ground in front of the support beam.

After a recent flood in the last few years of very terrible horror films, it's good to know there are some directors out there still able to make something the way it's supposed to be made. There have been a few movies that have had their moments, don't get me wrong. However, the lot of so called 'horror' films that are made for PG-13 ratings have been nothing by disappointments to hardcore horror fans. Dead Silence is like an spot of dry land in that flood.

We all have seen some commercials for this movie and heard the little rhyme that accompanies it. The ads only give so much away though, and I am going to not give away any more. However, I will let you know that this movie will be more than worth your time if you truly like the horror genre.

As good as it is, it is not without a small amount of horror cliché. However, one might not be able to make such a movie anyway. However, the freaky parts are very freaky and you will feel yourself being pulled into the plights of the characters.

I have never been one to find ventriloquist dummies scary. But if you are, than this movie will frighten you. It's not a movie that relies on big "jump" scenes either. It's images and implications are really frightening.

See this movie right away and you won't regret it!

Director Wan's follow-up to his smash-hit SAW (2004) is a crackerjack horror film about a ventriloquist's dummy, which seems to bring death to those around it. Kwanten, whose wife died mysteriously, returns to his hometown to investigate mysterious ventriloquist, who may be behind it all. Beware the Stare! Not entirely logical but atmospheric, stylish, well-directed and scary as hell! So suspenseful it creates a heightened sense of awareness in you. Superb subliminal score is reminiscent of SUSPIRIA (1977), and film's finale is a nod to INFERNO (1980). A treat for horror fans. Like SAW (2004), this was written by James Whannell, from a story by himself and director Wan. (from www.cultmovies.info)

This movie helped me regain my faith in horror movies to scare me. Also, faith that there are still directors out there waiting for there chance to scare us again. When I was younger, I got scared watching horror movies. When I got older, except for Nightmare on Elm Street and John Carpenter's The Thing, I haven't really been scared. I enjoy the movies, but not scared. This movie re-instated the fact that I "can" be scared.

Then there are the creative transitions in the movie. Awesome! Those and the atmospheric lighting and musical score created a most eerie atmosphere. Sometimes the slightest of tension before the storm.

The triumph being the director's choice of sound editing. Shhh! I won't give this away. But I extremely appreciated that gem. (RE: the title of the movie)

I have come to expect one thing from horror movies; stupid characters. It's sort of a compromise. I suspend disbelief that anyone would really be as stupid as people in horror movies because if the people in horror movies where smart, there wouldn't be nearly enough horror.

This movie, however, starred a PAINFULLY stupid protagonist. It will seriously blow you away. You've most likely heard the proverbial "Don't go in there!" in a movie theater during a horror film. This movie was more like "Don't go into the creepy haunted mansion while making sure that you don't have any weapons and no one knows where you are".

I'll give you a few examples (in case you couldn't figure it out SPOILERS COME HERE). At one point in the movie, Henry (a mortician who encountered the evil scary ventriloquist lady during his childhood) finds his mentally disturbed wife trying to talk to the creepy ventriloquist lady's doll (which, he finds entirely reasonable to keep inside his house). He puts the doll "back where it belongs" and then continues to go about his business. He then hears what he thinks is his wife crying in a crawl space (for lack of a better term) that she likes to hang out in. He goes in to apologize, and unsurprisingly the door shuts behind him. Also unsurprisingly, this dude doesn't make it to the end of the movie. This scene had me screaming "BUT HE KNEW SHE WAS BAD!" Okay, in words his actions sound a bit more reasonable, but wait, there's more.

The movie begins with our hero and his new wife receiving a mysterious package that is merely dropped on their doorstep. They open it, creepy doll. Our hero walks out to get takeout. Of course it wouldn't be a good idea to talk to the police now that someone is leaving random dolls on his doorstep, oh yea, did I mention the package had no stamps or addresses on it? Couldn't be that maybe whoever left this random package here might come back, right? Our hero gets home to find a bunch of blood on the floor. His wife's voice beckons him into their room, where he finds her dead. The cops (actually cop) clearly think that our hero is the killer. The next day our hero returns to the house to pick up the creepy doll. After all, it's not like he could tell something creepy was going on by virtue of the fact that he heard his DEAD wife talking to him.

Let's keep going. At one point our hero is trudging his way through the creepy theater (more about the theater in the last paragraph). They both know something is going on, they have both realized (at least I hope they have) that the creepy ventriloquist lady intends to kill them. While investigating a scary noise, our hero hands his lantern to the cop, who has a shotgun. Now, this action was already dumb enough, the cop needs two hands to use the shotgun effectively. But the cop is even dumb enough to take the lamp with his right hand! So if they should suddenly get attacked they wouldn't have a prayer of getting a shot off.

All of this, however, is NOTHING compared to the horrendous stupidity that occurs near the end of the film. The cop shows up to arrest our hero, announcing that all the dolls have been dug up (by the way, creepy ventriloquist lady had 101 dolls, sounds like a Disney movie!) and accuses our hero of being responsible. Unsuccessfully he tries to arrest our hero, but then his stepmother walks in with a telephone, announcing he has a phone call.

Okay, prepare for this.

The caller is Henry (the mortician), who has a terrible connection, Henry announces that he has a way to prove our hero is innocent of the murder of his wife. Henry asks our hero to meet him at the abandoned theater that the creepy ventriloquist lady once performed in, immediately, at night. Apparently our hero concludes that this miracle evidence the mortician found to clear our hero's name can't be revealed to him in broad daylight at, I don't know, maybe Henry's FLIPPIN' HOUSE?!?!?! Seriously, what is this guy thinking? If the evidence is SO urgent that, for some reason, he has to be told about it TONIGHT, then how does he ever expect to keep it until HIS TRIAL? Remember, our hero should have learned early on that the creepy ventriloquist lady can mimic voices, she mimicked his wife's voice when he found her dead body.

Not only this, the theater sits at the opposite side of a creek from the rest of town. There was once a bridge, now one must take a boat (for some reason some person sees fit to leave a perfectly good boat for the mere purpose of crossing from one side of a creek to another. And the two boats that sit there, seemingly not tied to anything, never seem to drift away). Our hero is so dumb he doesn't figure out that Henry requires a boat to get to the theater too, and there are only two boats, both of which are on the opposite side of the creek from the theater.

The problem with the whole last 20 minutes of this movie is that it seems as though our hero wants to get killed. In fact the movie in general made me appreciate the intelligence of all the other horror movie characters I've ever seen.

That being said, this movie actually was entertaining. The scares were solid (mostly), and the stupidity of the characters actually added to the entertainment value. I don't know if I can say I got my money's worth, so I suggest you wait for the rental, but I would at least say it is worth watching.

I had no interest in seeing this movie, but my buddy wanted to see it so we went to go and see it. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. I wasn't so much scared, but it was indeed very creepy. This movie almost reminds me of Pennsylvania legend "Bloody Mary". Donnie Walberg definitely plays the guy you love to hate, and of course the ending is good. So hey if you want a good thriller, then I say check it out. If you know you're seeing a girl that's VERY jumpy, then guys definitely take her so she can jump into your arms because this is a good type of movie for that. Not as much gore as I would have liked, but it was definitely fun to see. And of course check out the Jigsaw Puppet.

Yes this is short, yes it's sweet but hey isn't less more?

I love horror films and have seen tons and although this movie starts out great I must say, it was one of the hokiest horror movies I've ever seen. This statement sadly made considering the entertaining writing duo of the 'Saw' series. I can't wait for number four! I guess creativity is difficult to come by and originality even more so because there are other doll-comes-to-life horror genres. There was just too many instances that reminded me of 'Saw'. The final dummy near the end, looked more like a clown and very close to the talking doll in the 'Saw' franchise. Using Wahlberg again only hindered in tying the two films together comparatively. Can't he find work elsewhere? The frozen horror, facial masks were very reminiscent of 'The Ring.' The acting was not all that superb either. Wahlberg portrayed pretty much the same character as before and the lead character of Jamie hit a couple of rough spots when he didn't seem to know what he was suppose to be doing. When Jamie first heard Mary Shaw's name from Marion, Henry's wife at the cemetery - it didn't occur to him to question what Marion knew then. He waited until much later but even in her state of dementia, she knew what to do and what not to do.

It was so ridiculous how the old man Henry, kept saying that the town doesn't dare speak Mary Shaw's name and he did it over and over. It took a lot of the sting out of any believability that all the residents were afraid. The scenes where Henry describes Mary Shaw's dying wish to be made into a doll herself was/is completely unethical for a mortician to do. I understand the 'suspension of disbelief' but shouldn't even fantasy appear to be as close to reality as possible - so that it is scarier? Having the final dummy say to Jamie that it wants to whisper something in his ear was just plain bogus. They are supposedly so afraid of the thing and then all of a sudden, he becomes brave enough to get close in order to get a good face licking? Please.... And since the wife was murdered, there would have been an inquest and the autopsy would have revealed she was pregnant, way before we find out near the end.

I agree with an earlier post that the story could have been flushed out more. In addition, there should have been more scenes of Mary Shaw because she was creepy enough all by lonesome. That doll Billy had nothing on her. There should have been flashback scenes of Mary Shaw doing gruesome things so the audience could appreciate a good scare, or at the very least give the appearance that she had something to do with the little boy's disappearance. Jamie couldn't even remember the fairy tale, let alone who Shaw was, so how could viewers be frightened unless we were privy to how sick Mary could really get? The best part of the entire film for me was when all sound completely stopped; while waiting to see what happens next.

I didn't understand the ending and why the step mother became the perfect doll or what she had to do with the families' history. And since she lived, she apparently was never really a part of the Ashen clan. I mean if she was actually a doll that Shaw created and she was obviously helping Shaw, then this could have been clearer and not so confusing in the film's finale.

What can I say...I liked Saw, I'm scared of Ventriloquist Dummiess, this movie was a sure hit, right? Well...

My expectations were fairly high, I suppose. I was expecting a more intellectual, (or maybe just more interesting) plot. Let me cover the things this movie did well and what it lacked.

On the good side, the movie had a nice style to it. There were some legitimately scary scenes (cinemagraphically). The music was also appropriate, and they definitely took some chances, which is nice to see.

However, the entire movie is based on a fairly generic concept, and a very uninspired script. Don't get me wrong, the movie "works," but there is nothing to this movie beyond its base concept- no depth, no real characterization, and honestly, very few explanations at all. The end should tie everything together, but instead reveals how shallow the story really is.

Bottom line, it's the kind of movie that could easily be lost in the sea of other generic horror movies out there. I almost feel the story may have worked better as a farce, because it just didn't try hard enough as a horror.

In a rainy afternoon, the young couple Lisa (Laura Regan) and Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten) anonymously receive a mysterious package with a weird dummy inside. Jamie leaves the apartment to buy Chinese food, and when he returns, he finds Lisa dead, totally disfigured and without her tongue. The snoopy detective Jim Lipton (Donnie Wahlberg) blames Jamie as prime suspect. Jamie finds in the box a reference to their hometown and he drives to the decadent Ravens Fair for the funeral services of Lisa and to investigate the legend of the ventriloquist Mary Shaw (Judith Roberts). His father Edward Ashen (Bob Gunton) and his young wife Ella (Amber Valletta) disclose that the woman was accused in the glorious days of Ravens Fair in the 40's of abducting and killing a boy that yelled with her on the stage. The locals, including his father, chased her, cut out her tongue and killed her. On the next years, the cursed families and descendant of the killers has had mysterious and creepy deaths, with the tongues removed and faces disfigured. Jamie goes to the old theater in Lost Lake trying to find evidences of his innocence and discovers that Mary Shaw was constructing the perfect doll, and that the spirits have long memories.

I like ghost stories and "Dead Silence" is above the average of the genre. The film has a magnificent cinematography, reasonable performances but something was missing in the story to make it excellent. The surprising final twist does not give satisfactory answer why Jamie survived for so long. The explanation could be because he has not screamed along the story, but anyway I was not satisfied with the fast paced conclusion. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Gritos Mortais" ("Mortal Screams")

This movie is terrible. It's a knockoff of Darkness Falls, which itself wasn't very good, but this makes it look like The Exorcist. I was surprised to see the cast was that long, because outside of one flashback scene, there were probably less than a dozen people in this whole stinking movie.

The entire thing hinges on creepy ventriloquist dummies. However, that angle wears thin pretty quickly. The rest of it is a meandering mess with poorly or non-defined characters who's actions make no sense, a town that is conveniently as abandoned as the lazy hack writer needed it to be, a lot of stretching, contrivances and conveniences (really, in all that time, nobody found her creepy dummy room? The one that was right in the danged theater??)...and that's about it. This movie had a bare framework and didn't bother putting anything on it.

Whoever said this is how horror should be needs to stop watching movies completely. This movie was awful. Sorry, but you have to rely on more than just a cheap gimmick to make a movie properly scary. It's also helpful to make it believable and give us characters with which we can empathize. This movie does none of that and instead gives you a script-by-the- numbers small town mystery ghost story, tosses in dummies, and expects that to scare us. Ugh. Don't even bother with this.

I never thought, I will again see a good horror movies, involving dummies. Not after child's play 1 and 2, which I consider as the best and the creepiest dummy-horror movies. But, with the release of Dead Silence, I have to change my opinion.

Dead silence, talked about a ghost of the deceased ventriloquist, who seeks revenge for those who killed her in the past, using her self-made dummies as her spirit container.

And what makes it interesting, is the twisted plot. It's really unthinkable, and you would never thought about it. The ending is very very surprising. You won't understand what I mean, if you don't watch it for yourself. Go and watch it. Scream if you dare, jump if you must. But don't miss this one. This is an absolute must for a horror movies freak, especially those who likes dummies-horror movies.

I rate it 10/10

The state of horror films keeps deteriorating with the release of DEAD SILENCE, a super slick looking horror film which is as scary and deep as an episode of Scooby Doo.

The idea of ventriloquists and horror have already been used in previous films, so the concept is not that original but the film's pursuit of a "surprise" ending, which wasn't really a surprise, is THE only thing going for it and it is so lame and improbable that whatever credibility the film had before evaporated in an instant. The ending is truly one for the books.

Who keeps making these god-awful horror films that look like a forgotten episode for a cheesy TV show on The CW?

First let me begin by saying this....If you go see this movie in hopes to be scared, don't waste your time. There were little kids in the movie that were laughing when they were supposed to be scared.

The only thing that I actually liked about this movie (the only reason I gave it one star..if i had the choice i would have given it no stars) was the ending. The ending was alright.

I honestly feel like this film was a waste of time and money. The whole thing behind the movie is if you scream you die. Mary Shaw is supposed to rip your tongue off..give me a break. What were these people thinking?!?!?! If you want to go see a great scary movie....avoid this one.

How do you top a film like Saw? That is the question proposed when Saw creators James Wan and Leigh Whannell took their love for puppets (obvious in their films) one step further and made their next feature involve them. Well, more specifically an old woman whose restless spirit can inhabit dolls. The problem when you proceed a great movie like Saw is that you've set yourself so high up in the chain that the natural progression would be to go down. I had mixed feelings when I saw the promotional stills and trailers for this film, but I went in with an open mind. Originally titled Silence, this is a huge step down for director James Wan, as I found this just a mediocre film. Sure it had an interesting premise and it was nice to see the resurrection of a dead sub-genre, but it was just lacking in so many aspects, especially with the box office numbers -- barely even making its budget back.

So, we're given a simply story about an old ventriloquist whose murdered after being suspected in the disappearance of a local boy, and her vengeful spirit inhabits the dolls in her huge collection. We follow a widower who returns to his hometown when his wife is murdered after receiving a mysterious doll that was owned by the old ventriloquist, whom was thought to have been a mere legend to the younger generation. Instead of having a doll run around with a knife slicing away at legs and ankles, the main doll in this film (whose dressed similar to Jigsaw's puppet), uses its supernatural powers to scare the hell out've its victims and removes their tongue when they scream. This leaves their corpse with a fearful look in their eyes and an over-sized jaw; looking oddly similar to the corpses in The Ring. The movie does have a couple somewhat creepy scenes, but it has zero atmosphere, so a lot of the potential tension and scares it could have offered is lost.

In fact, the most effective scares the film had weren't delivered by the dolls, but the old woman herself. I personally always thought the use of the elderly in horror films has never been explored enough, because (no offence to older readers), they can be pretty freaky if you give them the right makeup and tools. The woman (dressed similar to the one in the 1989 British movie The Woman in Black) offers up some decent boo-scares when the time presented itself, and she honestly interested me more than the dolls themselves. The movie is pretty slow-paced for the first hour, and Donnie Wahlberg's character as the persistent detective bent on outing the widower as the murderer, is presented as more of a nuisance to the story than playing a pivotal role in the film, but he did finally make himself useful towards the end.

Then the "twist" was finally revealed at the end that I'm sure many (like myself) saw a mile away. Although the climax was interesting, it just piled on to the many plot-holes the film already had to offer. In the end, Dead Silence was nothing more than a mediocre addition to the genre that offered an interesting villain, but a bland tale of horror and revenge.

OVERALL Although the movie offered an interesting premise and villain, the slow-pacing, lack of atmosphere, scares, and a predictable ending, left the film as nothing more than a mediocre fair. Worth a rent for something a little different, but don't expect a whole lot, story and scare-wise.

Admittedly, these days, horror movies are so bland and predictable that you think twice about watching and maybe even don't bother at all. No way is that what you should do with Dead Silence.. If you are looking for a good storyline with good acting, great scares, just enough gore and body counts then this is your movie!

When I saw the poster of the Ventriloquist doll I admit I rolled my eyes and thought "not another one", but I didn't want clichés to spoil my fun so I decided to go ahead and watch it anyway... DISAPPOINTED I WAS NOT!!!! The storyline is unique in that THE TWIST IS FANTASTIC! I would never have thought of it! And you have to admit that most scary movie endings have been predicted before the movie's even begun...

I'm not usually one to watch scary movies alone but I braved this one out of sheer boredom despite being told not to by a fellow reviewer, and do not regret the decision at all. It made me jump in all the right places and, as the tagline suggests, I even held myself back from screaming (I'm actually laughing about that now.)

Gone are the days that a movie should be good just because there are known actors in them.. OK, so this one has Donnie Wahlberg but come on.. he ain't Mark (but the film is still great):P The lead actor is good looking and believable... what more do you need..

I hope you all enjoy this film as much as I did! I say bring on another great horror like this one!!!

From the start you will be drawn into the story! The story has some flaws in continuity and background! But this can be overlooked since you will get a very entertaining movie that is full of suspense and scares! For an experienced viewer most scary moments you can see coming! One example is the fact that when "the ghost" arrives the sound from the surroundings becomes silent! This is a very cool effect but warns the viewer of the danger! The dolls play a major role in this movie and are quite effective as a tool to scare us! I lived in a town where some doll lovers hanged their collection of dolls on their wall outside! When I would pass this house it looked like these dolls were looking back at me and following me with their eyes! Of course they didn't but they creeped me out big time! The movie does this in the same way and even adds a bonus twist ending! I think that "Freddy Krueger" and "Jason Voorhees" will have some serious competition from the ghost/villain in this movie (It is obvious who this is,but I am not going to spoil the fun for the people who still have to watch the movie)! "Dead Silence" could have been a lot scarier,but for the most part it is an perfect example of a good horror movie! Although I see potential for a sequel I sincerely hope that they won't make one! It is great as it is!

When I watched Saw, it was the only film to make me stand up off the couch with disbelief of what I saw. Brilliant writing, great acting, dynamite directing, everything rolled up into what became my all time favorite film. This film on the other hand was different. The writing was somewhat "used". I just kept guessing where the story was going to go every scene, and that's not really a bad thing. I love the film, the twist was actually pretty smart, just a little corn ballish scene that reminded me of Child's Play. If you are Sawe fans, I wouldn't see it, if you hated Saw, go ahead and see it, you will most likely hate it to. It doesn't target a particular crowd at all except for those who want to see it. In my opinion, very well done. 8/10

I watch horror movies on a regular basis. I can't say I expect much from many of them simply because many are built around old standards. Unfortunately this film was entirely predictable with no chills and/or thrills throughout the movie. There weren't even the cheap laughs of the ludicrous just a slow meandering of poorly executed plot and a pretty boy.

The concept was there, when aren't creepy little dolls a little scary but it failed in its attempt. Movies such as "Dolls" or "Puppetmaster succeeded in creating a more eerie atmosphere and a stronger background or "Dead of Night" who utilized the more innate qualities of what makes a ventriloquist dummy so strange and off-putting

The movie begins with a quote:

"In the 6th Century B.C. it was believed that the spirits of the dead would speak through the stomach region of the living.

From the Latin VENTER for 'belly' and LOQUI 'to speak'

Hence the word VENTRILOQUIST"

Hollywood is always looking for a new vessel for evil spirits. The doll project has already been done but apparently not in this manner.

Not long into the movie a ventriloquist doll is delivered to the doorstep of Jamie Ashen (Ryan Kwanten) and his wife Lisa (Laura Regan). Shortly after that the wife dies a horrible death and Jamie looks like the main suspect.

The story was essentially about a woman named Mary Shaw who wrought havoc upon the people of Ravens Fair after her death. There was even a poem about miss Mary, "blah blah blah Mary Shaw. Something or other don't scream." It was there as a poor attempt to drum up more intensity and fear.

The whole story, as well as the characters, was stale. For some reason we were supposed to care about Jamie and his quest to find out about the doll and the death of his wife. Donnie Wahlberg, clearly in the movie for comic relief, played a Columbo style detective (sloppily dressed and everything) investigating Jamie for the murder of his wife. His character adds nothing to the movie except a paltry attempt at believability--in other words a woman can't wind up dead with no tongue without someone having committed the murder.

The movie meanders on with Jamie pursuing answers and Det. Lipton pursuing him. There's some spooky stuff, jump scares, deaths and mercifully the movie ends. In the end there is a bit of a twist. The twist was kind of cool but because I didn't particularly like the story it was wasted. Dead Silence was a dud.

This movie is a very nice but under-rated movie, in fact it exceeded all my expectations.It provides a couple of decent scares.The way the story enfolds is very exciting.But the best thing about this movie is that it keeps the audience curious about "What will happen next??".The suspense of this movie entertains us more than the horror.This movie is more of a suspense movie than a horror movie.It has some good acting and the climax is really entertaining.The background music is fantastic and scary and combined with the sets,it helps in creating a very spooky environment.This movie is much better than other puppet horror movies like "Doll Museum" or "Child's Play".