Dead Silence (1997 TV Movie) User Reviews (18)

A pair of jokers

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 7 February 2015]

Dead Silence stars James Garner and Marlee Matlin about a hostage standoff in upstate New York on the Canadian border. The story takes place right near where I live in Buffalo though it was actually filmed in Canada. Those river rapids could definitely be the Niagara River.

Kim Coates, James Villemaire, and Gary Basaraba play criminals who have escaped from prison and the phrase 'armed and extremely dangerous' doesn't begin to describe the situation. Especially Coates who has one sick criminal mind, but as we find out is not as crazy as we're first led to believe.

In their escape the three cons take a busload of deaf children and their teacher Marlee Matlin hostage. Garner plays the FBI hostage negotiator who has been the subject of a lot of controversy as a similar situation left a lot of dead bodies and he's got disgruntled agents in his own ranks.

This one is both action and tension filled and when you think it is over it most definitely is not. Coates has a pair of jokers in the cards he's dealing out.

Garner is cool, calm, and collected despite a lot of provocation. Watch out for a nice performance by Lolita Davidovitch who has some surprises herself.

For fans of the principal cast members for sure and for those who like tension filled dramas.

A basic crime/action film with guts. James Garner makes it work.

[SteveSkafte · 7/10 · 7 November 2010]

"Dead Silence" was something of an unexpected pleasure for me. As far as TV movies go, this is pretty impressive. James Garner offers up an exceptionally engaging characterization, and it was a pleasure to see actors like Charles Martin Smith and Lolita Davidovich. Kim Coates is appropriately menacing as the bad guy.

The story is fairly standard, sure, but it doesn't quite get ridiculous until the final act. It was as if a more hands-off crime story wasn't enough for the screenwriters and they decided that it needed a good deal more action to spice things up. That move was largely a mistake. Daniel Petrie Jr. does good enough as director. I like the general look and feel of the film.

I enjoyed "Dead Silence". It's a hard film to dislike, one of the rare sort of action films that are neither especially challenging nor insultingly bad. Anyone should be able to get some entertainment out of this.

Better then I had expected

[MuggySphere · 6/10 · 21 December 2004]

The film started off pretty ordinary with the hijacking of a bus full of deaf students and their teacher. But as it progresses it turns into quite an enjoyable and dramatic thriller.

I have not read the book this film is based on but from what I saw I would say the film is above the average for a "made for TV" movie.

Only one complaint here and that was why they felt the need to throw in swear words every few minutes just to make the film feel somewhat contemporary. At least that's the impression I got. From my POV it felt like they had just thrown in one two many of those special magic words and this ruined part of the enjoyment of this film for me.

Having said all this I would definitely recommend this film to anyone who likes drama/thriller kind of movies. On the whole it's not a bad experience at all. Plus you have classic actors like James Garner and Marlee Matlin, what more could you want?

6/10

An extremely worthwhile film. Highly enjoyable.

[KrelianZG · 27 July 2002]

Dead Silence is one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. It has all the elements necessary for a quality film. Drama, suspense, action, and even the occasionally witty comment by the all-star cast are present. Drama and action, specifically, are present in spades. James Garner truly shines in his role as the conflicted FBI agent John Potter, as does James Villemaire, who portrays the character Sonny, one of the kidnappers of the deaf children. Dead Silence is a one of a kind, edge of your seat movie, sure to keep you guessing till the climatic finale. I recommend this film to all, as everyone should see this exemplar of modern film-making.

High tension hostage drama.......

[merklekranz · 7/10 · 15 July 2009]

"Dead Silence" has a real grabber of an opening, and rarely lets up thereafter. The hostage drama plays out in a somewhat logical manner, until the end, where credibility gets stretched to the max. It is interesting to see the way James Garner manipulates the situation to his advantage, only to have the whole thing unraveled by what appears to be nothing more than a tacked on ending. Nevertheless the film delivers a lot of tense moments, and is entertaining, despite the rush to a rather unbelievable conclusion. The movie is well acted, and the on location photography is acceptable. I recommend seeking this one out. - MERK

Gardner and Matlin Lead The Cast

[shelbythuylinh · 7/10 · 1 December 2021]

As a school bus of children are being taken hostage by heartless dangerous thugs there. As Mary Matalin is the teacher being taken with the kids and that Matalin will play such a crucial key role.

Like that of James Gardner in veteran John Potter the FBI agent that botched up Waco Texas 1993, Randy Weaver in 1992, and OK City in 1995. As his wife just died to make matters worse for him.

Gardner plays with arrogance but with humanity and wit all in the same time rolled up.

But to complicate things even more are the other law enforcement who question his skills and a power hungry State's Attorney who wants fame and for his helping his career.

While a cop out of state may have a secret along the way as you have to watch this to believe and see what I mean.

James Garner and Marlee Matlin Saves This

[ShelbyTMItchell · 6/10 · 19 July 2021]

Due to acting and chemistry, as James Garner stars as troubled G-Men with a blend of arrogance and humor along with that over in trying to redeem himself after losing his wife of nearly thirty years and botching three fiascos like Waco Texas.

Matlin is the deaf teacher that gets caught up and with a bus of school children also deaf taken by three vicious thugs. With no intent on letting anybody alive.

Making matters worse is that of a power hungry State Attorney. But hope to de-escalate the situation is a female cop who has in the secrets of her own.

It is saving the children, trying to redeem his law enforcement career, capture the criminals, and leaving there in one piece and no carnage. But the thugs make it harder. Along with politics and publicity seeking. But Garner and Matlin save the typical average kidnapping drama.

School bus load of brats taken hostage by misunderstood escaped cons

[helpless_dancer · 7/10 · 10 April 2000]

Exciting film dealing with a hostage rescue unit of the FBI. They must try to talk a deranged convict and his buddies out of killing a group of young kids held in an abandoned slaughter house. Things go about as expected until the last 20 minutes when a surprise is thrown in which spices up an otherwise routine suspense picture.

When the feds get involved, you're toast!

[mark.waltz · 5/10 · 3 February 2022]

A group of violent killers (Kim Coates, James Villemaire and Gary Basaraba) come up against tough FBI agent James Garner when they hijack a bus of half a dozen deaf teenage girls, their teacher (Marlee Matlin) and the bus driver and hold them hostage in a condemned building in the middle of nowhere on the Niagara River. One of the girls has really bad asthma and needs medical attention, and another hostage, let out, doesn't get away so freely. The three men are truly demented oh, and there's no way that they're going to go down without taking out as many people as they can.

Made between his series of TV movies as Jim Rockford, this is quite a different James Garner than you've ever seen. He's tired and cynical and rather crass, a far cry from the gentleman who romanced Doris Day, Debbie Reynolds and Julie Andrews back in the day. Garner is the head FBI agent in charge of the mission to rescue these hostages, and he's going to not going to let any other government officials stand in his way, and that means the idiotic New York State assistant attorney general who nearly gets himself killed as well as the hostages, and Garner isn't afraid of having him told that he'll put a bullet in his leg if he tries anything like that again.

A daring escape led by Matlin leads the girls on a cruise down the very rapid river, and the attempted rape of one of the girls leads to a violent conclusion. Lolita Davidovich has a late entrance as a police officer who once was involved in a heavy hostage situation, and has had contact with one of the criminals previously, but there's a sick twist that makes the audience think it all over when it's not. The intense situation will keep you engaged, but the last quarter is really ridiculous. This is one of those films where you wish they had stopped while they were ahead, and after a while, the plotline becomes as demented as the crooks.

Enjoyed this made for TV movie!

[willandcharlenebrown · 7/10 · 15 September 2021]

Pretty good Matlock'ish movie. James Garner is a missed gem. Awesome to also see Scott Speedman in a very early role prior to Underworld. Nice twist at the end!

What a load of cobblers

[micke-bystrom · 4/10 · 15 November 2021]

It's quite interesting how American drama have evolved since 1996. This film is highly uninteresting and plays as if it was made in 1986. A film like this couldn't be released now. At least not without audiences laughing at it.

Not really anyone puts in a great performance here. I regret I gave this a chance (Had hopes for Garner). There are many greater crime films that were made in the 90s. No reason to waste your time on this one.

Treat for Deaver lovers

[dollyhouses · 8/10 · 13 October 2003]

If you're a fan of Jeffery Deaver novels then you will have read 'A Maiden's Grave'.

And you will not be dissappointed by this screen interpretation of the novel.

It sticks closely to the plot.

The screenplay is crisp and clear and the characters well portrayed.

A group of deaf students and their teacher have their bus highjacked by three escaped criminals and they are then held hostage in an old slaughterhouse.

The duel between the seasoned hostage negotiator (played by James Garner) and the hostage takers is superbly crafted.

There is an added twist at the end.

If you've read the book you will love every minute, if you haven't then you will still enjoy an excellent thriller.

Well done.

How do hostage response experts work? Good narrative about this question

[charles1848 · 7/10 · 30 November 2021]

John Potter, the James Garner character, must resolve a situation in which three violent criminals have taken a schoolbus load of children and adults hostage. They are holed up in an abandoned building. Potter arrives and firms up the perimeter. Does he aim to apprehend or kill the three criminals in order to bring their rampages to an end? Does he take the risk of letting them try to escape in the hope of getting the hostages out alive? The movie explores the moral issues and works a good deal of the technique of hostage response teams into an engaging story.

The final twenty minutes of plot twists are ridiculous.

Garner is excellent; one of his best.

[daniel-kyle · 9/10 · 13 March 2010]

I have always been a huge fan of James Garner. His movie work at times has been as good as his "Rockford Files" TV show, and this is one of the best examples. I was not familiar with the novel by Deaver on which it is based, but I will say that the story does not disappoint. The actors are all excellent, and there is a good deal of suspense. I disagree with some other reviews here on Garner's performance, as I bought the DVD largely because of his role. Another good movie he did near the same time was "Fire In The Sky", which fans should also check out. This movie was filmed in Canada, near where I live, and you can somehow always tell a Canadian production just by the look. Perhaps the portrayal of America never feels quite genuine.

Enjoyable to watch, an improvement over the original story.

[A-J · 8/10 · 18 September 1998]

I think Dead Silence is a better story, then the book ( A maiden's Grave ) on which it was based. This is rare indeed, for usually a story looses depth, when it is turned into a movie. In this case, the plot is more compact, with less unnecessary details, which contributes to the tension.

What a great find on Max

[bmiller59 · 9/10 · 11 June 2022]

I'm a big fan of Jeffrey Deaver but I'm not aware of this story but I will look for it. Great suspense and cool twists in this story. John Potter, Jim Rockford, aka James Garner was superb. Just like his roles in The Rockford Files.

If you are a fan of James Garner and/or fan of books by Jeffrey Deaver, this is a must. Tomorrow I need to go to our local used bookstore and get this one.

It was difficult to not spill any spoilers.

Cliche-ridden excuse for a drama

[CQKRIS · 25 June 2001]

B movies never cease to amaze me. Coates is the stand out in a cast which would be more at home in a high school play. The acting is purely unoriginal, especially Garner, who at his age should be applying his trade on golf courses rather than in this cheap excuse for a drama. Where do people get the inspiration to make such poor efforts? The typical hollywood ending just banishes any credibility that the film had built up. And one other thing, why do the bad guys always get killed?

Thrilling suspense with great acting and many cool plot twists

[Rodrigo_Amaro · 10/10 · 15 January 2023]

While generic in style and action since much cannot be done in the hostage situation flick, "Dead Silence" succeeds in going some extra mile creating tension, heightening a great deal of drama and giving us some interesting plot twists. The final result is one of the best experiences from the genre, one that got me hooked from the very first scene up to credits rolling.

Three convicts on the run kidnap a school bus with deaf children and they go into hiding on an abandoned facility. That's when the FBI team led by a veteran agent (James Garner) still suffering a previous hostage situation that went wrong takes charge of the situation along with the local police. Everything's risky, dangerous men making their demands and no one's fooling around yet Garner is quite tough in his resolutions, never caving to the men's pressures unless if strict necessary. Everything's tense, the clock is ticking and who'll succeed with their mission is vital to either save poor hostages or leave them all dead. Also as hostage there's the kids teacher (Marlee Matlin), also deaf but very wise in finding ways to communicate with the police about the situation inside the place.

I don't want to use the word cliche, instead I'll go with routine. The routine covers all the basic dynamic from hostage/kidnapping movies so in that regard it can go either way: if you love the format you'll be thrilled through it all but it already got tired of such then you'll be complaining a lot about it. I'm part of the former so I was impressed and involved each scene went by. But for the examples of the latter I advise you to stick through the usual repetitive scheme since the movie does pay-off because there's a change of tune when you least expect it and it'll make the experience very rewarding. Not to mention you have an amazing cast of veterans Garner, Matlin, Lolita Davidovich, Charles Martin Smith and then newcomers Scott Speedman (who plays a brave young agent) and a quick shot of Barry Pepper near the conclusion. But obviously that Kim Coates as the bad guys leader who steals the show from scene one - such a hateful character, excellent performance.

It was a long time that I haven't got involved with a TV movie this great. This should get a wider recognition and more audiences. 10/10.