Soundless
Soundless
| 22 April 2004 (USA)
Soundless Trailers

Viktor, a methodical hit man, probably on his last job, has no plan for his retirement. He does not kill Nina, a woman sleeping beside his latest mark; then he follows her and rescues her from an attempted suicide. Nina is attracted to him, but also wants to know who he is. Her pursuit of his identity crosses the investigation of Lang, a brilliant police investigator who tries to inhabit the minds of the victims and the killer. Viktor's employer also wants to kill Viktor and his contact, an aging arms dealer and family friend. Does Viktor have a future?

Reviews
Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??
Tedfoldol everything you have heard about this movie is true.
Ogosmith Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.
Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
groggo Interesting crime film that left me as confused at the end as I was at the beginning. Except for an undeveloped reference about a murder when the killer was nine years old, the film just doesn't give us enough information about a cold-blooded (but perfectionist) killer. It's too slick by half, although the visuals are quite stunning. One critic suggested that you're not supposed to examine this too closely -- just absorb what you see and enjoy it. Fair enough if that's good enough for you. I could not engage with the characters, who seem like they're seeking an author in a Pirandello play. The acting is first-rate, the forensics interesting (if you like that kind of procedural stuff), but in the end it lacked a solid story that made you want to care about Viktor, the silent, soundless killer.
armand32 "Lautlos" is a well done and surprisingly fresh contract killer movie, far the best German film in this genre I know. Choosing Joachim Krol, often playing the nice guy next door is an interesting idea that really works out well. Krol as Viktor/Felix is playing well against his stereotype and provides an intense portrait of a dedicated character whose life changes dramatically when he meets "Nina", played by Nadja Uhl.Andreas Berkel is nearly equally good as profiler "Lang", showing a hunter that is completely absorbed by his job. Among other things - I like the pacing of the story and it's sympathy for the main characters, two lost souls trying to come together against major obstacles. In the end, you cannot help to develop sympathy for the lonely guy living from death but striving for love. I was very satisfied to see Viktor escape in the end, finding love and peace (?). Even his hunter seemed to like this in the end. I definitely advise to see this one.
nemonidas For everybody, who likes the shiny American action film, this truly might be a bit different. What I like especially about this "german action movie" is, that everything has a kind of normal color and sound. Nothing is overdone, overcoloured. What appears as boring compared with action movies with high pace like e.g. Bad Boys is the attempt of making it more realistic and not so shiny. The villain, for example, is not the typical bad guy, shootings don't try to "look or sound good" or the SEK (german S.W.A.T.) appears quietly and nearly invisible - like they should - without any of that heroic "fly-through-the-picture-shooting". The characters are also carefully designed to maintain this realistic approach, although the investigator in charge may be considered a bit weird. The killer, however, is as normal as can be - somebody you could meet on the street. Especially Joachim Krol, who's most famous appearance was in "Der bewegte Mann" (german comedy) surprised me with his totally different character.All in all a film worth seeing, particularly while the story is different to all the action kind of movie you usually get.
atldus I think I have to disagree with the first poster, who said he this movie could have been great if the dialogue had been better.In my opinion the absolute minimum use of dialogue between the two main characters in this picture, and for Lautlos 'picture' is more true than usual, is one of its most interesting aspects.The emotions & thought of these two people are intensely displayed by a great combination of camera-work and acting. When the word are spoken the atmosphere already has the viewer closely connected with these two characters. I found myself thinking what the characters themselves realized only seconds later and stated in a very minimalistic way.Just a beautiful film...