Review: Mute

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Set in a futuristic Berlin, a mute bartender, Leo (Alexander Skarsgard) goes searching for his girlfriend Naadiah (Seyneb Saleh) after she abruptly goes missing. He ends up crossing paths with some dangerous people, mainly Cactus Bill (Paul Rudd) in the process.

Being a huge fan of Duncan Jones' Moon - which gets a nice little easter egg in here - I was really looking forward to this one. Even when all the bad reviews started rolling in. While I didn't find it nearly as bad as its Rotten Tomatoes score suggests, calling this movie a mess is a bit of an understatement. 

I'm not sure Jones knew which way to take this story. Naadiah and Leo feel like they've only been in a relationship for a week or so, so the lengths he's going to find her seem odd. Not to mention, Saleh is not good in this film at all so it was hard for me to actually route for him to find her again. Bringing in Cactus Bill also felt a bit forced, even when you find out why he's a bigger part of the story other than some guy Leo happens to run into a few times, the whole thing felt shoehorned in. Then there's another subplot with a character who is a pedophile, and I cannot for the life of me understand what Jones was thinking here. It served no purpose. Sure, he succeeded in making his audience feel uncomfortable but not without asking "why is this even here?" 

Mute essentially has three good things about it. Futuristic Berlin looks cool, even though they are lacking things like reverse look up and voice assistance for those who cannot speak. Skarsgard and Rudd are both very good in their roles but they're wasted with this mess of a script. Skarsgard got lucky, he didn't get saddled with any of the horrendous dialogue. 

Recommended: No

Grade: D+

Memorable Quote: "People are so fucking rude." - Cactus Bill (Paul Rudd)