It
is not exactly the case of a buried lede, but the Jim Henson Company’s creature
design work for this labor-of-love family drama is definitely a hook that could
pull in considerably more viewers. Indeed, who better to realize the
fantastical beasts that inhabit a young child’s imagination? Unfortunately,
Bodhi, the little lad with the Lord Fauntleroy coif, will have to face up to
the very adult reality of his father’s impending mortality in Mark Webber’s The Place of No Words, which screens
during the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival.
Bodhi
can be difficult, probably because he is often not totally present. He has a
rich fantasy life, wherein his father is a knight, who protects the boy during
their wanderings through a Seventh Sign-like
fantasyscape. The father knows his time is short, but he has difficulty
broaching the subject, partly out of a desire to enjoy the moment and partly
due to the fear Bodhi simply will not understand.
No Words is achingly
well-intentioned, but it also shuns fake sentimentality like the plague.
Essentially, it is a “feel-good” movie without the expected weepy catharsis.
However, the Henson Company’s creatures, particularly the beaked
Frick-and-Frack duo, really bear the studio’s signature look.
They
are cool, but Henson fans should still understand the fantasy realm of No Words is not like the lush worlds of Dark Crystal or Labyrinth. Instead, Bodhi’s imaginings mostly take place in a
rocky, wind-slept environment, aside from the occasional fart swamps. This is
some distinctive filmmaking, but there is surprisingly little genuine
playfulness. That is a bit odd for a film so dedicated to a child’s
perspective. That also makes it an exhausting cumulative viewing experience.
As
the father, Mark Webber looks like he is carrying the weight of the world on
his shoulders and also has it pressing down on his chest. It is a rigorously
stripped-down, painfully earnest performance. Likewise, his son Bodhi Palmer is
totally unaffected and utterly natural as his namesake, but there is an
ambiguousness to his screen presence that raises questions that are never
addressed. Theresa Palmer’s mother character is not as sharply written, but she
earns the audience’s respect by literally fighting for screen time and
attention during the third act.
It
is important to bear in mind No Words is
not a sappy tearjerker. It is an emotional ride, but Webber scrupulously
eschews cheap manipulation. On the other hand, calling it a fantasy rather
overstates matters, so calibrate your expectations carefully. Recommended for
fans of Oliver Sacks and the Henson Studio, The
Place of No Words screens again this afternoon (4/30) and Saturday (5/4),
as part of this year’s Tribeca.
