Lorna’s Silence (2008)
84%RT Audience Score: 76%
Awards & Nominations: 3 wins & 11 nominations
Subtle and emotionally bleak, this gripping thriller features the Dardenne brothers’ recognizable penchant for realism and very strong performances
Lorna’s Silence is like a game of Jenga, where each block is a tiny detail that slowly builds up to a heart-wrenching climax. The Dardenne brothers’ portrayal of a woman caught in the middle of a dangerous scheme is both beautiful and haunting. It’s not a Hollywood thriller with a predictable plot, but rather a slow-burning character study that will leave you thinking long after the credits roll. Plus, the casting of the previously unknown Dobroshi is a stroke of genius. Overall, Lorna’s Silence is a must-watch for anyone who appreciates artful cinema.
Production Company(ies)
Highline Pictures, Camera One Endless Picnic
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Seraing, Liège, Wallonia, Belgium
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for brief sexuality/nudity, and language
Year of Release
2008
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 35m
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Language(s):French, Albanian, Russian
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jul 31, 2009 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 22, 2009
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
Lorna’s Silence, Arta Dobroshi, Jérémie Renier, Fabrizio Rongione, Alban Ukaj, Morgan Marinne, Olivier Gourmet, Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne, written by Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne, drama, R rating, Sony Pictures Classics, box office gross, $337.7K, reviewed by Keith Uhlich, Marjorie Baumgarten, Rene Rodriguez, Calvin Wilson, Peter Howell, John Anderson, David Walsh, Richard Propes, Dan DiNicola, Graham Fuller, Martin Tsai, Michael Joshua Rowin, audience score, 69%, legal residency, Russian mobster, Belgian, cafe, junkie, cab driver, thriller, realism, subtle, emotionally bleak, strong performances
Worldwide gross: $5,123,676
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $7,057,668
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,072
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 769,648
US/Canada gross: $338,795
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $466,677
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,344
US/Canada opening weekend: $34,411
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $47,400
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,228
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Jérémie Renier – Claudy Moreau
Fabrizio Rongione – Fabio
Alban Ukaj – Sokol
Morgan Marinne – Spirou
Olivier Gourmet – L’inspecteur
Jean-Pierre Dardenne – Director, Producer, Writer
Luc Dardenne – Director, Producer, Writer
Denis Freyd – Producer
Director(s)
Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Writer(s)
Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Producer(s)
Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne, Denis Freyd
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
3 wins & 11 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (98) | Top Critics (38) | Fresh (83) | Rotten (15)
A soul-crushing weight rests upon Lorna (Dobroshi), the Albanian-immigrant heroine of the Dardenne brothers’ stunning proletarian character study.
November 17, 2011 | Rating: 5/5
Keith Uhlich
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
Lorna’s Silence echoes long after the movie ends.
September 11, 2009 | Rating: 3/5
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
Lorna’s Silence doesn’t work, but it’s a beautiful misfire.
September 3, 2009 | Rating: 2.5/4
Rene Rodriguez
Miami Herald
TOP CRITIC
As filmmakers, the Dardennes are more concerned with probing the causes of crime than in glamorizing it.
September 3, 2009 | Rating: 3/4
Calvin Wilson
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
TOP CRITIC
In casting the previously unknown Dobroshi, the brothers approach greatness with their lean portrait of simple humanity tested by desire and driven desperate by circumstances.
August 28, 2009 | Rating: 3/4
Peter Howell
Toronto Star
TOP CRITIC
The story within Lorna’s Silence is built on tiny increments of tantalizing details, meted out in penurious droplets and with chest-tightening tension that suggests that what the brothers wanted to be when they grew up were boa constrictors.
August 28, 2009
John Anderson
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
The filmmakers tend to confuse flatness with realism. For the most part, the characters are unappealing and the brothers treat them coldly.
February 13, 2021
David Walsh
World Socialist Web Site
The Dardenne’s are unafraid to show the darkness of humanity.
September 14, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/4.0
Richard Propes
TheIndependentCritic.com
In a Hollywood thriller, we might encounter a conniving wife in league with a vicious gang of con men. Here, the Dardenne brothers, Jean-Pierre and Luc, contrive a richer scenario.
January 23, 2018
Dan DiNicola
The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
The noirish ambience (if not style) underscores the heinousness of those who traffic in human lives for their own ends-a central tenet of the Dardennes’ work.
August 15, 2017
Graham Fuller
Artforum
Still, what initially promises to be a morality tale doesn’t really have any messages to speak of about immigration, womanhood, poverty, humanity or anything else for that matter.
October 7, 2015
Martin Tsai
Critic’s Notebook
Lorna’s Silence is not only a beautiful film, but also one that moves the filmmakers’ art forward a small step or two — a tectonic shift for these art cinema old faithfuls.
August 2, 2015
Michael Joshua Rowin
Stop Smiling…
Plot
Lorna, an Albanian woman living in Belgium, marries a local junkie for legal residency and collaborates with a low-life cab driver to marry a Russian mobster, but she soon finds herself enmeshed in a threatening underworld.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
There is no goofy or funny or odd comment about the film Lorna’s Silence on Fresh Kernels.
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