Line #8 Film/SilentFall


1	[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/silent_fall.jpg]]
2	''Silent Fall'' is a 1994 American psychological thriller written by Akiva Goldsman, directed by Bruce Beresford, and produced by James G. Robinson.
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4	Fred and Darla Warden, a husband and wife, are found brutally stabbed to death, and the only witness is their nine-year-old autistic son Tim (Ben Faulkner). Jake Rainer (Creator/RichardDreyfuss), a controversial child psychiatrist turned therapist, works with Tim to try to retrieve his memory of the event. He faces interference from Dr. Rene Harlinger (Creator/JohnLithgow), who wants to treat Tim with drugs, and Tim's protective teenage sister Sylvie (Creator/LivTyler).
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6	!!''Silent Fall'' contains examples of:
7	* AbusiveParents: [[spoiler:It turns out Fred Warden was raping both Sylvie and Tim, while Darla did nothing to stop him.]]
8	* AdoptingTheAbused: Dr. Jake Rainer, at the end of the film, has apparently adopted the autistic Tim Warden, who [[spoiler:was being sexually abused by his late father]]. Tim's biological father and mother were killed [[spoiler: by his older sister, who had suffered the same abuse at her father's hands, and snapped when she caught her father abusing her little brother.]]
9	* AndStarring: "Introducing Liv Tyler."
10	* BetterManhandleTheMurderWeapon: [[spoiler:Tim wrenches the knife from Sylvie's hands after she stabs their parents.]] When the police arrive, Tim is wandering around the crime scene, waving a bloody knife and wailing incoherently.
11	* ChalkOutline: The police draw outlines of the Wardens' bodies on their bedroom floor.
12	* DeadHandShot: When Jake visits the crime scene, there's a shot of a bloody hand sticking out from under a sheet.
13	* FreudianCouch: Jake has a backless couch in his office on which his adult patients lie while they talk about their relationship problems.
14	* MyGreatestFailure: Jake used to run a group home for autistic children, until a boy under his care committed suicide because Jake pushed him too hard in a therapy session. Jake quit working with kids after that.
15	* OffIntoTheDistanceEnding: The movie ends with Tim and his new parents, [[spoiler:Jake and Karen]], walking away to go trick-or-treating together.
16	* TakeMyHand: Tim climbs onto the roof and sits rocking by the edge, in danger of falling off. Jake crawls close to him, claps his hands to get Tim to mimic him, then reaches out. When Tim mirrors his action, Jake grabs his hand and pulls him to safety.
17	* TantrumThrowing: Another child at Tim's new home pours peas onto his plate while he's eating, knowing he hates round foods. Tim screams, flips the tablecloth, and throws dishes against the walls.
18	* ThroughHisStomach: Jake cooks Tim a meal as part of his effort to bond with him.
19	* TitleIn: The last scene has "One year later."
20	* UninhibitedMusclePower: When pushed far enough, Tim is strong enough to break open a locked door. Dr. Harlinger uses this as evidence that Tim murdered his parents after he had already been dismissed as a suspect for being too weak to inflict that kind of damage.
21	* VoiceChangeling: Tim's "echolalia" is portrayed bizarrely - not only can he repeat what other people say, he can make his voice sound exactly like theirs. He can even come up with his own sentences using other people's voices. Jake explains that Tim uses other people's voices because he's afraid to be himself, which doesn't explain how he can reshape his vocal cords at will.

Context Film / SilentFall