Speak No Evil review: James McAvoy is great but film still fails to justify its existence

Speak No Evil is yet another victim of Hollywood's remake obsession. A remake of the superior 2022 Danish movie of the same name, the latest film from Blumhouse Productions and Universal misses what made the original movie so effective.

I was shocked when I saw reviews rolling in for Speak No Evil, and they were overwhelmingly positive. Then I couldn't help but wonder if the movie was being reviewed by people who watched it on its own merit—which, fair, I didn't have that perspective, but I'm sure many will—or by people who had seen the 2022 movie and were comparing it. That's the camp I obviously fall into.

Despite my misgivings about this movie and the fact the trailer spoils a lot of it, I did go into it hoping to be pleasantly surprised. Sadly, I wasn't.

Speak No Evil follows the American family Ben (Scoot McNairy), Louise (Mackenzie Davis), and their daughter Agnes (Alix West Lefler) on a beautiful vacation in Italy where they connect with another family, Paddy (James McAvoy), Ciara (Aisling Franciosi), and their son Ant (Dan Hough). The couples hit it off so well that Paddy and Ciara invite Ben and Louise to come stay with them in the countryside for a long weekend.

At first, the trip away seems like exactly what Louise and Ben need to fix their frayed marriage. But the more time they spend with Ciara and Paddy, the sooner it becomes apparent that something is seriously wrong with them and their twisted "family" unit.

The bulk of Speak No Evil plays out almost exactly like the original film without many significant changes. Yes, the characters and some plot points are a little different, but it more or less follows the same plot beats. James Watkins' take on the story doesn't really change at all until the third act and climax. Unfortunately, the changes don't fit the overall disturbing tone of the film and instead make it feel more like a cliché and somewhat predictable thriller.

That said, had they stuck to the same bleak ending as the original, that would have been frustrating, too, given the film struggles to add anything new or different to the storyline.

In short, Speak No Evil is a decent thriller and I'm sure people unfamiliar with the original will enjoy it will well enough. But if you did see the 2022 film first then it's hard to feel like this movie has any real reason to exist other than to show off McAvoy's ability to be deliver a showstopping villainous performance.

Speak No Evil is now playing in theaters and the 2022 Danish film is available to watch on Shudder if you want to make the comparisons yourself.