Product Details

• Actors: Sylvie Testud, Tatjana Trieb, Howie Seago, Emmanuelle Laborit, Sibylle Canonica
• Directors: Caroline Link
• Writers: Caroline Link, Beth Serlin
• Producers: Andreas Schreitmüller, Christina Undritz, Dieter Nobbe, Jakob Claussen, Luggi Waldleitner
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Subtitled, NTSC
• Language: English, German, Spanish
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Walt Disney Video
• VHS Release Date: February 1, 2000
• Run Time: 109 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 630524068X
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #279,399 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jenseits der Stille, May 29, 2003

By 

cnyadan (Bavaria, Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond Silence (DVD)

This was an absolutely beautiful movie. It tells the story of Lara, a child with normal hearing who has two deaf parents. Although her parents can function without Lara, her parents have come to depend on her as a link to the 'hearing' world, even though she is very, very young.

Needless to say, the deafness of her parents has created interesting personality dynamics in Lara's world. One of the most strained relationships is between Lara's father and his sister Clarissa. When Clarissa introduces Lara to the clarinet, this is something that Lara latches on to, even though her parents can't comprehend the music she's playing. Because of this, and because it is Clarissa who wants her to keep at it, her parents are less than overjoyed. The film revolves around Lara growing up and excelling at playing the clarinet, and the decisions she has to make if she wants to pursue her music at a higher level. None of the characters are transparent or superficial; one gets the idea of their thoughts and their reasonings by the way they act and interact with one another.

The DVD is in German, with options for English subtitles or English for the hearing impared (It would be sad if they didn't; after all, this is a film about deaf people.) The only other "extra" is basically an advertisement for "other films you might like". However, this shouldn't deter one from enjoying this absolutely exquisite film.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I have been waiting so long..., February 26, 2003

By 

"jstadnic" (Vancouver, BC, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond Silence (DVD)

If I had any musical talent, this film could easily be my life. The story is about a young hearing girl, Lara, growing up with two deaf parents. Lara often uses her parent's disability to her advantage, sometimes not relaying all the information in a conversation when she is asked to interpret, or outright lying in these scenarios. Her aunt, Dad's sister, presents her with a clarinet and develops a tight bond with Lara. Their relationship is very different than that of Lara and her parents simply due to the communication factor. Lara wishes her aunt was her mother.

The conflict in the film arises from the issues Lara's father has with her love for music. He is tormented by family memories of his sister being adored for her musical talent, while he is hauled off to the other room to be locked up like an animal.

This is an amazing film. As a hearing child of deaf parents, it comes closest to my own experiences and frustrations with deaf and hearing culture internal and external to the family unit. It is easily in my top-five films of all time.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great representation, May 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Beyond Silence [VHS] (VHS Tape)

i was a deaf education major in college and can safely say that this is the best representation i have ever seen of the deaf community. it is an excellent movie and i HIGHLY recommend it.