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5 modern silent films for when you just want 'no talking'

Silent films still have a magic all of their own.

Robert Redford in "All Is Lost," "Flow" and "Ghost Story"

Robert Redford in "All Is Lost," "Flow" and "Ghost Story"

Robert Redford in "All Is Lost," "Flow" and "Ghost Story"

Modern movies and TV shows are louder than ever. There was a time when a big explosion or a thunderous moment of dialogue truly captured our collective attention. Things have gotten so bad, entire generations of people young and old are turning to subtitles just to understand what people are saying. Those productions are meant to capture our attention span even if they don't always connect on a deeper level.

There's something truly special about the silent films of Hollywood's past. Watching filmmakers and actors discover and perfect their art form years before they even had sound effects led to some truly astounding feats that still impress today. But modern filmmakers have also occasionally turned to the silent, or mostly silent, format to great success in recent years. Yeah, it can be an adjustment. But sometimes a change of pace is just what we need. Here are five modern (mostly) silent films for when you need a break from all the explosions and subtitles!

A promotional images for the film Robot Dreams Robot Dreams (2023)Robot Dreams/Wild Bunch

ROBOT DREAMS

In 2007, writer/illustrator Sara Varon graced the world with a graphic novel called "Robot Dreams." As an artist, she is known to mostly invent characters who are "non-human" because she claims to be bad at drawing them. What luck for us! She also likes to craft the most unique friendships, with "Dog" and "Robot" being one of those unions.

Cut to 2023 when writer/director Pablo Berger's film adaptation premiered at Cannes. The plot? A lonely cartoon dog, who lives in Manhattan in the mid-80s, orders a robot after seeing it on a TV commercial. The two become fast friends, but trouble ensues when Robot gets lost.

A gentle music score, including the song "September" by Earth, Wind and Fire playing on repeat, helps even the most dramatic scenes feel calming and even kind of groovy. Themes of the film include friendship, love, loss and memories worth saving.

A promotional still for The ArtistThe Artist (Warner Brothers)

THE ARTIST

French filmmaker, Michel Hazanavicius, swung for the fences when he brought us the (mostly) non-dialogue driven, black-and-white movie The Artist in 2011. Who would have thought a film like this could win five Oscars, including Best Picture? And so well deserved! It also took home Academy Awards for Best Director, Best Leading Actor, Best Score and Best Costume Design.

An ode to the 1920s silent film stars, and their heartbreaking, and sometimes even comical journeys into a technological world that has moved on without them. (I know I can relate, I still have a satellite dish!) Silent film star Douglas Fairbanks is said to have been one of the inspirations for the film's leading character.

It stars an international cast of brilliant actors including Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell, Penelope Ann Miller and last but far from least, Uggie the dog as Jack! In fact, it's Jack who steals the show, with a fabulously choreographed dance number coming in at a close second.

A promotional still for the movie FlowFlow (Baltic Content Media)

FLOW

Let's move over to Latvia, where writer/director Gints Zilbalodis gorgeously directed and co-wrote the animated film Flow (alongside writer Matīss Kaža.) This wowed Cannes-goers in 2024 and has already garnered Best Animation awards, including a Golden Globe. (It has my vote for the upcoming Critics Choice Awards.)

What makes this film such a wonderful antidote to current stress-like conditions, is its simplicity and utter beauty. It's simply this: a black cat facing what is assumed to be a natural disaster (a flood) wanders around, attempting to survive. In its journey, it meets a slew of other animals (a yellow Labrador Retriever and a lemur to name a couple) and even though they're all on their own course to survival, they find that their paths continue to cross. There is no real commentary here. It's essentially a Zen-like reflection of life, death and all the beauty in-between.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

What's most magnificent is the movie was actually created using Blender, a free and open-source computer graphics software program. Despite this bare-boned animation team, the film glows with light and originality. Zilbalodis, alongside Rihards Zaļupe, reportedly composed seven hours of music for the movie, of which nearly an hour was used. (The soundtrack can be streamed online.)

Promotional still for the film All Is LostAll Is Lost (Lionsgate)

ALL IS LOST

With the exception of some brief voiceover work from Robert Redford, there is not only no dialogue in this film, there is only one actor. Written and directed by J.C. Chandor, All is Lost stars Redford as a man who is lost at sea. We follow his trials and tribulations, all the while begging the question - what would we do in a similar situation? Would we have the chops to survive? (Not sure I would. I can barely open a Snapple, let alone build a water distillation device.)

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

The music, as is so common for these type of films, is lovely. In this case, Alex Ebert (lead singer for the band Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes) scored the soundtrack of which he claimed "wind, water, rain, sun, are the story's other characters.

No spoilers, but there are ambiguous moments (or at least one big one) where the audience can choose its meaning. Depending on the lens with which it's viewed, or perhaps the mood one is in when they see it, it can carry different meanings for different people. Such a deep and meaningful expression of what it means to maintain or lose hope and courage.

A promotional still for the film A Ghost StoryA Ghost Story (A24)

A GHOST STORY

This lesser-known film written/directed by David Lowery stars Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara. While it does have some talking, it's mostly a fever dream and a silent poem about death. I'll be honest, when I saw Lowery's decision for Affleck to wear the traditional "ghost uniform "of a white sheet with holes poked out, I was concerned. It turned out to be one the most haunting films I've ever seen and it has stuck with me to this day.

The characters are merely given initials, because what even ARE names when we're talking about million year soul-attachments? A Ghost Story became a darling at Sundance in 2017, with A24 distributing later that year.

It's not a movie meant to frighten people, but rather to inspire them to meditate on death and love. Both Affleck and Mara give subtle, yet heart-wrenching performances in the silent spaces between time. (That might appear to be a word-salad, but it will probably make sense once you've seen the film!)

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Teacher of the year explains why he's leaving district in unforgettable 3-minute speech

"I'm leaving in hopes that I can regain the ability to do the job that I love."

Lee Allen

For all of our disagreements in modern American life, there are at least a few things most of us can agree on. One of those is the need for reform in public education. We don't all agree on the solutions but many of the challenges are undeniable: retaining great teachers, reducing classroom size and updating the focus of student curriculums to reflect the ever-changing needs of a globalized workforce.

And while parents, politicians and activists debate those remedies, one voice is all-too-often ignored: that of teachers themselves. This is why a short video testimony from a teacher in the Atlanta suburb of Gwinnett County went viral. After all, it's hard to deny the points made by someone who was just named teacher of the year and used the occasion to announce why he will be leaving the very school district that just honored him with that distinction.

In a video carried by Fox5 Atlanta, 2022 Gwinnett County Public Schools Teacher of the Year Lee Allen breaks down what he sees as the overriding problems in the county's school system. While his comments are specific to that of Gwinnett County, it's virtually impossible to not see the overlap across all of America and how the problems have become exponentially more challenging as students have migrated back to in-person learning.

"At the end of this year, I will be leaving Gwinnett County Schools, leaving behind the opportunity to submit for state teacher of the year, roughly $10,000 in salary, and most importantly, the students and colleagues I've built strong relationships with," Allen, a math teacher at Lawrenceville's Archer High School, says at the beginning of his remarks. "I'm leaving in hopes that I can regain the ability to do the job that I love."

Normally, one might assume teacher pay is the overriding issue for educators like Allen. But he makes it clear that he is, in fact, leaving money on the table to avoid what he deems as unacceptable changes to the student body and how the district manages its teachers and the learning environment. Here are his main grievances, in order:

"First issue at hand is student apathy and disrespect for school rules and norms. … We have an alarming number of students that simply do not care about learning and refuse to even try."
"We are also experiencing incredible disrespect and refusal to follow basic school rules. There is little to no accountability or expectation for grades or behavior placed on students or parents. Rather than being asked what the student can do to improve their understanding, teachers are expected to somehow do more with less student effort."
Cell phone use. Teachers simply cannot compete with the billions of dollars tech companies pour into addicting people to their devices. Phones allow constant communication, often being the spark that fuels fights, drug use and other inappropriate meetups throughout the day. We need a comprehensive district plan with support behind it in order to combat this epidemic and protect the learning environment."
"Lastly, there is a huge disconnect between administrators and teachers. The classroom in 2022 is drastically different from just three years ago. Most administrators have not been in a classroom full-time in years or even decades. Many teachers do not feel understood, valued or trusted as professionals from administrators and the decisions that they make."

While Allen points fingers at administrators and student behavior, he also says that the pressures put on both students and teachers alike by COVID-19 had a catastrophic impact on learning. "The pandemic has acted as a catalyst and turned a slow negative trend into an exponential crisis," he says.

But he also offers some solutions, stating, "I won't list complaints without offering ideas for improvement."

All administrators should spend at least one week in a high needs classroom, "without a suit, without people knowing your title and in the same room, all day, for an entire week."
Prioritizing smaller class sizes.
Greater transparency from the district in terms of needs and expectations and goals.

"We all want the same thing and we cannot accomplish this without supporting one another," he says near the end of his remarks.

With more than 400,000 views already, it's clear his remarks resonated with people not just inside his school district.

There's almost nothing more important than how we educate our children. And while the national political debate centers on areas of far less importance generated to gin up controversy and campaign fundraising, it's families and local leaders who will need to do the heavy lifting of reprioritizing the fundamental principles of learning and leadership if we want an American educational system that can compete on the global stage in 2022 and beyond. After all, when literal award-winning educators like Allen are walking away, it's clear something more needs to be done.

This article originally appeared three years ago.

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Neil deGrasse Tyson is blown away by a brilliant 2nd grader's question about black holes

His answer was pretty brilliant, too.

via Kaluza Jamar/YouTube

Neil deGrasse Tyson pleasantly shocked by second-grader's question.

In March 2009, PBS sponsored an event at The Palladium in St. Petersburg, Florida, called “Cosmic Quandaries with Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson.” The event featured a Q and A with the famed astrophysicist and science communicator. Over 800 people attended the event and had the chance to ask Dr. Tyson a big question.

The most memorable moment of the night was when a young boy named Clayton, a second grader, asked Dr. Tyson a question that was as high-minded as scientists could ask and also something that young kids would ask each other on the playground: “Will like a black hole be able to suck in another black hole?”

Clayton’s question was so great that it surprised Dr. Tyson. “Good question, it's not past your bedtime or anything?” he joked after being challenged by the young boy. “You're in second grade, and you're thinking about colliding black holes. You belong in like 12th grade, okay? Go tell your teacher I said put you in 12th grade.”

- YouTubeyoutu.be

What would happen if 2 black holes collide?

It just so happens that a student at Dr. Tyson’s college did his PhD thesis on colliding black holes so he could answer the question, much to young Clayton’s delight. As a tribute to Clayton’s great question, Dr. Tyson admitted that there was a lot about the thesis that he didn’t understand.

Dr. Tyson said that the collision of two black holes would create an extraordinary disturbance in the fabric of space and time because 2 black holes enter each other’s event horizon. The event horizon is the opening to the black hole, where the pull is so intense that nothing, not even gravity, can escape. So what happens when 2 event horizons start pulling on each other? It opens up the opportunity for time travel.

Once Dr. Tyson said “time travel,” Clayton’s eyes lit up and he knew he had asked a dynamite question.

neil degrasse tyson, astrophysics, black holes Clayton asks Dr. Tyson a question.

“They've studied what effect that has on the passage of time, and it turns out there is a path you can take around two moving black holes that haven't quite collided yet where you can end up in the past of when you started that journey,” Dr. Tyson explained. “So it's backwards time travel — according to calculations from Einstein's general relativity — is enabled by the severely distorted fabric of space and time.”

However, even though the collision of black holes makes time travel possible, you probably wouldn’t survive anywhere near the cosmic event. “So beyond that, you really want to sort of watch that from a distance,” Dr. Tyson joked. Ultimately, after the collision both black holes will come together to create a new black hole that’s twice as large.

The video is a wonderful example of how, when kids are allowed to let their incredible imaginations run wild, they can come up with ideas that impress even the world’s most famous astrophysicist. In an appearance on the “Impact Theory” podcast, Dr. Tyson remarked that one of the most important things we can do as adults is encourage children to be the little scientists they are.

"Kids are sources of chaos and disorder. Get over that fact. Where does the disorder come from? It’s because they are experimenting with their environment. Everything is new to them, everything,” he said. “Your job is less to instill curiosity than to make sure you don’t squash what is already there.

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Devastated dad shares why he didn't tell his 10-year-old daughter it was her birthday

“I don’t know if we made the right decision…It’s killing us.”

@kylephilippi/TikTok

“Today’s her birthday, and we’re pretending like it’s just another day."

Kid’s birthdays are both lovely moments of celebration, and potential sources of stress for any parent, for various reasons. For dad Kyle Philippi (whom we’ve previously covered for dressing up as Jafar to cure his friend of an irrational phobia), his daughter’s 10th birthday was particularly full of anguish—since he didn’t tell her it actually was her birthday.

In a video posted to his TikTok that amassed close to 3 million views, the concerned dad shared his unique plight that brought him to this unusual decision: his daughter’s birthday falls on Jan 2, over winter break, meaning most kids wouldn’t be able to attend her birthday party. Two years prior, the Philippi found this out the hard way, when they tried to throw a party on the day, and no one showed.

“She was devastated,” Philippi let out through a sigh.

@kylephilippi We’re about 60/40 on whether this was a good idea… #birthday #parenting #parentingtips #autism #autismawareness #autismacceptance #auditoryprocessingdisorder #surprisebirthday #birthdayparty ♬ original sound - Kyle Philippi

Then last year, they tried a different approach. Instead of a big social gathering on Jan 2, they had a more intimate environment of just the family and one close friend, followed by a proper party once winter break was finished. At this point Philippi explained that his daughter is on the spectrum and had auditory processing disorder—so even though she had fun at both events, she still couldn’t understand why her friend couldn’t show up on her actual birthday, and was still disappointed. That’s never what any parent wants for their kid.

To make matters more sensitive, Philippi shared that his daughter was beginning to not be invited to other classmates' parties, and suspected that part of why she yearns to have a party with all her friends there was because “she knows she’s not getting to go to everyone else’s birthday.”

Hence why Philippi and his wife decided to try something new by simply not acknowledging the birthday until they can do a party with his daughter’s school friends. Understandably, though the choice was made with the best of intentions, when Jan 2 came, there were tons of conflicting feelings.

Photo credit: Canva

“I don’t know if we made the right decision. But here we are,” Philippi shared. “Today’s her birthday, and we’re pretending like it’s just another day…and it’s killing us.”

Down in the comments people—especially those with special needs kids, or were autistics themselves—were quick to reassure Philippi that he made a tough, but right call.

“As an autistic person who struggles with birthdays, you’re doing the right thing. it’s a little unconventional, but so are kids like us!! keep it up,” one person wrote.

Another added, “these ‘decisions’ are so hard but you are doing great by taking it all into consideration and trying to do what will help her feel great on her birthday.”

It seems the real thing worth noting here is that Philippi and his wife are trying to make their kid’s birthday the best it can be for her, and that’s truly admirable. Odds are nearly every parent can relate to this on some level. And for parents with neurodivergent kiddos, that can often mean navigating uncharted territory. Maybe they’ll try a different approach next year. Maybe not. What matters is they’re trying.

And from the looks of it, the actual birthday wasn’t a total wash. In a follow up video, we see that Philippi’s daughter got her favorite chicken wings for dinner, and got to plan her upcoming birthday…which will apparently be Raggedy Ann themed.

@kylephilippi Replying to @mamamcsorley1 She ate her favorite meal today and we continued to plan out her ultimate birthday party in 9 days 🙂 #birthday #parenting #parentingtips #autism #autismawareness #autismacceptance #auditoryprocessingdisorder #surprisebirthday #birthdayparty ♬ original sound - Kyle Philippi

Naturally, Philippi will be going as Raggedy Andy, per his daughter's request.

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13-year-old's bucket list is the perfect blueprint for an adventurous life

If you ever wanted to own a cool jeep or discover a fossil when you were a kid, this is your reminder that it's not too late.

EarSubstantial9362/Reddit & Nico Aguilera/Flickr

A bucket list is usually something people start thinking about toward the end of their lives, or sometimes in the crisis-filled middle. You become more aware of your mortality and more determined than ever not to waste your remaining days. Most commonly, you see people wanting to travel more and see the world, experience adrenaline-filled adventures like skydiving or deep sea scuba diving, or capture major human milestones like falling in love or becoming a parent.

Just imagine if we started on those lists earlier, how much we could accomplish! One dad recently discovered that his 13-year-old son had been keeping a bucket list. He couldn't resist posting it online and now the wacky, hilarious list is going viral.

Highlights include:

Discover a new species
Save a species
Prove the existence of goblins
And purchase a full taxidermy alligator

Safe to say that if this kid really pulls all of this off, he'll grow up to be the Most Interesting Man in the World: An eclectic and well-traveled cool dude who loves animals (except for the octopi, sorry guys), has major Hollywood connections, and rides around in an awesome jeep with his best friend, a binturong.

Here's the full list, currently sitting at 20 items.

My personal favorite is that the kid wants to know what it feels like to beat someone up! Very Fight Club of him. Hopefully if he ever gets the chance, it'll be a baddie who deserves it.

Online users found the list endlessly entertaining, and kindly shared some tips for how the kid could actually make his dreams come true.

For example, according to one kind citizen, apparently there's a spot where you can pay to dig up fish fossils in Wyoming. That's number 15 done and dusted!

He could definitely befriend a binturong (a fascinating mammal that looks like a cross between a bear and a cat) with a journey to Southeast Asia. So there's number 6.

Taxidermy alligator? Amazon, two-day shipping. Number 1 done.

Anyone with a computer or phone can start a YouTube channel, and practically every major city in the world has a Japanese restaurant where you can order octopus.

Dad said his son wants to change his name to "Trevor Bartholomew Dunglepants." He may want to sit on that one for a few years before making a rash decision, but when he's ready, all it takes is a little paperwork.

The entire list is completely doable with the possible exceptions of "become a billionaire" or "meet an alien." Users encouraged dad to help his son achieve as many of his bucket list items as possible.

"Don't let his dreams be memes," one person wrote.

"May his life be as adventurous as his bucket list!!!" wrote another.

Pomax/Flickr

It's kind of inspiring that as random, chaotic, and bizarre as many of these bucket list items are, they are totally achievable for the most part.

Kind of makes you wonder... are you dreaming big enough?

One user summed it up perfectly. "As someone who no longer thinks they could write one of these because I've stripped away so much aspiration and replaced it all with 'let's be realistic,' foster this. Do not let him lose that source of light that's so uniquely his- shaped like him in a cool jeep full of fossils, driving to beat up a goblin."

I think an interesting question to ask yourself from time to time is: Would your younger self be proud of you?

lizard fossil in sand Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

All of us at one point or another wanted to be professional athletes, firefighters, brain surgeons, or astronauts. We wanted to live in a house made of gold or candy and have a pet unicorn. In most cases, it probably didn't work out that way. But that's OK, that's life! Our dreams as a child aren't always possible, or even a good reflection of what we really want as fully formed humans.

But sometimes we're onto something when we're younger. We are the purest versions of ourselves and mostly uncorrupted by the things that weigh us down as grown ups. Try to remember that when you're making your own bucket list. Yeah, eating fresh pasta in Italy is cool, but have you ever ridden on the back of a whale? Surfed on lava flowing out of an active volcano? Written, directed, and starred in your own movie about your life?

You might be surprised to find out what's actually not nearly as impossible as you might think!

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Victoria's Secret responds to viral song that's critical of how it caters to body stereotypes

One song could literally change how Victoria's Secret does business.

commons.wikimedia.org

Victoria's Secret responds to viral song.

In the summer of 2022, you probably heard the song "Victoria's Secret" by Jax, who wrote the song for a young teen girl she babysits after the girl tried on bathing suits at the famous clothing store chain.

Girls and women have been perusing the racks of Victoria's Secret for decades. The yearly fashion show that depicted tall, thin models donning enormous angel wings was something to look forward to for millions of people. But for others, it was a reminder that their body type didn't fit the mold of what was deemed "beautiful" by one company's standards. That insecurity-inducing impact in advertising is exactly what the song is about and why it resonated with so many people online.

@jaxwritessongs
I wrote a song for The Kid I Babysit. It’s called Victoria’s Secret 🤫 ❤️ 👙 @TheLascherFamily #victoriassecret #fyp #bodypositivity #originalmusic

The teen's experience was less than ideal, as she was brought to tears over mean comments about her body from other girls. In response, Jax quickly cranked out a song about what she considers the potential self-esteem harm caused by the lingerie giant and uploaded it to TikTok where it went crazy viral with more than 39 million views. It has become such a cultural phenomenon, that it even crossed over from TikTok to the Billboard charts. So, it's no surprise that the song caught the attention of Victoria's Secret PINK CEO Amy Hauk.

photo of a letter

Recreation of Victoria's Secret's letter

The virility of the catchy summer bop is what catapulted the song to the attention of Hauk, who then reached out to Jax about finding a way to be more inclusive. In response, Jax turned to her 11 million followers to encourage them to put their suggestions in her comments.

@jaxwritessongs
My response to Victoria’s Secret. The floor is yours…. #victoriassecret #inclusivity #speakyourmind

Jax said in the video, "I don't feel comfortable speaking on behalf of an entire generation in a manipulative, non-inclusive marketing culture." The songwriter went on to say, "Since Victoria's Secret is paying attention to my account, I'm asking anyone who feels like they never had a voice, or ever had a say in the matter to comment on this video." She tells her followers to let the company know what they "need to feel safe and represented, and comfortable and beautiful in today's society."

The women did not disappoint. They came in, flooding Jax's comments section with suggestions on what they'd like to see. Shoelover99 commented, "We want REAL WOMEN! scars, stretch marks, tattoos, we want ALL WOMEN to feel beautiful in the product & with size inclusive."

TikTok user Heysquirrelfriend said, "How about the "older" ladies in the world? We like to feel loved and accepted too! Because our age is over 50 doesn't mean we don't feel young inside."

The overall comments section was filled with women asking for inclusivity in sizes. I'm not sure if was Jax's song, the comments section or something that has been in the works, but a press release soon went out announcing more inclusive bra sizes by partnering with Elomi, an inclusive lingerie company. It includes band sizes from 34 to 46 and cups from DD to O.

With this development, it certainly seems as if the brand is paying attention to the desires of the people wearing its products. Women everywhere are hoping the new blip of inclusivity from the brand isn't short-lived.

In the Fall of 2024, the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show returned with a new, inclusive line-up of models in an attempt to make good on their promise of being inclusive by employing models of all sizes and genders. Teen Vogue's Aiyana Ishmael wrote an op-ed that challenged how inclusive Victoria Secret really has become, citing herself and fans who felt the brand didn't do the whole inclusivity thing as well or as substantially as they could have. It seems, though, Victoria Secret is committed to trying.

This article originally appeared three years ago.

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