Two strangers on a prison planet discover that they may have a tragic connection in The Silent Planet. Theodore (Elias Koteas) is a terminally ill convict, serving an isolated sentence on a silent mining planet, whose memory of life on Earth has been steadily fading. Theodore’s isolated existence is disrupted by the arrival of a new prisoner Niyya (Briana Middleton), who slowly opens up to Theodore’s attempts to befriend her. However, when Theodore begins recovering some of his foggy memories, Niyya realizes that he may have a connection to her tragic past.
The Silent Planet Synopsis
The Silent Planet is a science fiction drama written and directed by Jeffrey St. Jules (Bang Bang Baby). The film is set in the Capillian Star System on penal colony planet #384. Acclaimed Canadian character actor Elias Koteas (Exotica, Crash, Shutter Island) stars as Theodore, imprisoned for a murder he has long since forgotten and is going crazy by an alien gas that makes him hear voices. Theodore is soon joined by Niyya, played by Briana Middleton (The Tender Bar), a young woman adopted as a child by an alien race known as Oieans, who have colonized Earth after the destruction of their homeworld. As Theodore and Niyya get to know each other, they discover that they may have more in common than they have expected.
My Thoughts on The Silent Planet
The Silent Planet arrives a decade after Jeffrey St. Jules’ 2014 debut Bang Bang Baby, a film that was developed as part of the Cannes Festival Residence and won Best First Canadian Feature at TIFF, however, his second feature, 2021’s Cinema of Sleep, came and went with little notice. The Silent Planet has a plot comparable to Duncan Jones’ hit 2009 debut Moon, in how this is an isolated story with only the two central protagonists interacting with each other, supplemented by flashbacks and AI helpers. Elias Koteas, who has never looked more old and weathered, delivers a solid lead performance, particularly in the first act of the film when he has barely any dialogue. While The Silent Planet falters somewhat in the third act, suddenly turning into a thriller, it is still a science fiction film worth checking out.