First Trailer for Scorsese's 'Silence' Reveals a Grim Catholic 'Heart of Darkness'

Everything about this movie hits my pleasure centers.  Scorsese is arguably the best director alive, so any time a new film of his comes out it's worth taking notice.  I love the true story of two young Jesuit priests, played by Adam Driver (The Force Awakens, Girls) and Andrew Garfield (The Amazing Spider-Man, The Social Network), who venture through Japan to find their rogue mentor, Liam Neeson channeling Colonel Kurtz.  Speaking of Neeson, how about that cast?  Just great. Also, Rodrigo Prieto's gorgeously stark camera work is the cherry on top, and it looks to be full of those amazing film-history rich shots that are a Scorsese trademark.

Silence is actually a passion project for Scorsese.  He's been working to get it made in some form or another for nearly 20 years, and finally the stars have aligned.  In hindsight, the fact that this story captured his imagination for so long makes total sense.  Before he decided to pursue film, Scorsese studied to be a priest.  Catholicism has been a subtle influence on his artistic sensibility for his entire career (see the underrated The Last Temptation of Christ), and Silence is steeped in subverted classic Catholic iconography.     

The trailer is intense and beautiful.  The only thing that really worries me is how so few passion projects turn out to be amazing movies.  Something about sitting with a work too long makes artists overthink their instincts, and even Scorsese isn't immune (Gangs of New York is an ambitious misfire).  That this is Scorsese's first screenplay credit since Casino speaks to how much the story inspired him.  Hopefully, he isn't too close to the material this time, and delivers one for the books. 

Check out the trailer and make up your own mind below!