Beyond Silence

REVIEW
Courtesy of the New German Feel-Good Cinema, the light and bright Beyond Silence is pleasant and inoffensive; so what's the point? Well, mainly, it gives a window into the world of the deaf. Lara works overtime to translate between her deaf parents and the hearing world -- including us, the viewers. It becomes akin to a one-sided phone conversation. To its credit, the film is less pandering and pedantic on disabilities than others of its ilk. The story focuses on Lara and her desire to become a clarinet player. Under the tutelage of her aunt (an enemy of her parents), Lara travels to Berlin to study. A series of routine plot adornments -- death, love -- take us comfortably to the groaner of a Mentos commercial ending. All this is accompanied by clarinet muzak meant to demonstrate what a genius player Lara is. (German with English subtitles)