Immigrants move into America with the hope that they’re now in a safe country. Historically, this nation has provided for millions of people who didn’t even belong to their homeland. Such was the story for Nina, who escaped from Belarus to start a new life. Directors Karyna Kudzina and Michael Vaynberg’s Silence of the Prey takes us to the countryside, where a mysterious old man inflicts a lifetime of terror on Nina and Isabella.
Spoilers Ahead
What happens in the movie?
Mary is a member of an unnamed charity that helps immigrants get jobs in the States before they can save enough money to live on their own. While protesting against the Russo-Ukrainian War, Nina faced imprisonment in her homeland of Belarus. She and her daughter Isabella fled from Belarus to reach America, where they met Mary. Mary takes Nina to New Plymouth to work as a housekeeper for a single old man, Luther. Mary describes Luther as somewhat eccentric but a kind man overall. Mary names a few women who worked for him before Nina, but tells Nina that all of them got enough money to start their own lives afterwards. Mary meets Luther, who’s a little hesitant to take Nina on because she has a child, but agrees anyway. Luther owns huge estate, but there’s no sign of humanity within two miles of the property. Nina is excited and happy about starting her life under a kind old man, but the events that follow scar her for life.
What does Luther do in New Plymouth?
Luther is the informal butcher of the town, who hunts stags and provides meat to his neighbors. He strictly tells Nina not to snoop around his barn, as that’s where he works and it’s off limits. Another place that is off limits is his basement; apparently raccoons break in there, and she might lose a limb. Luther’s house is neatly kept, there’s not much for Nina to do, and Isabella gets along with Luther all too well. Nina’s had a cough from the time she arrived, and Luther offers her tea made from the local plants and herbs. Nina loves the taste of it, but soon she goes into a hallucinogenic state and sleeps like a baby. Luther insists that the tea has chamomile and lavender in it, and it’s only going to help Nina’s cough. The more Nina drinks the tea, the more she hallucinates. She sees a man with an antler mask here and there, and despite her seemingly normal life there, she’s scared for herself and Isabella.
Who founded New Plymouth?
Luther explains to Nina that it was his ancestors who gathered in New Plymouth to start a new community. His ancestors traveled with the pilgrims, and they decided to set camp here and never left. The community believed in living off of the land, as the land provides everything one needs to sustain themselves. This explains the lack of grocery stores and the lack of WiFi connection in Luther’s house. Luther doesn’t even have a phone; he believes that he only needs the things that are a necessity to live a civil life. Nina’s phone doesn’t work without WiFi, and she too makes peace with the fact that she’s in a better place than she was.
How does Andres come to the property?
One day Luther goes to town, and Nina sees a man running towards her from far away. She gets scared and hides inside the house. Later, when she tells Luther about it, he takes her deer hunting. Even though Nina fails to kill a deer, Lucas establishes his point that if anybody intrudes on his property, she shouldn’t hesitate to blow their brains out. Soon after this, the same man comes running again and introduces himself as Andres, a Colombian man whose car broke down a few miles back. Luther knocks him out with the butt of his rifle and asks what’s his business while pointing the gun at him. Andres’ genuine answers convince Luther, and he lets him stay in his house until his car is fixed. Later that night, Andres subtly hits on Nina, and they share a drink together.
What happens at the dinner party?
Luther tells Nina about a festival his community celebrates each year after fall, the Harvest. They gorge on food and drinks, and it’s not much different than Thanksgiving. While Luther informs Andres that his car will be fixed in two days, he’s invited his friends over for a nice dinner. Luther takes Nina to give her a dress for dinner, and Nina comes across a book, and when she tries to touch it, Luther freaks out and warns her not to touch what’s his. The book is named “Order of Children of the Son,” and a picture of a man with antlers sits right on top of the title. Luther apologizes to Nina and makes her remember that it’s his house and she should behave like a guest. Later that night, Nina sees that Luther’s friends are already gathered for the dinner, and they’re, erm, not much different than typical narcissists. One of them thinks that Belarus is a city of Ukraine, and another one insists that Russia is doing the right thing, as Ukraine was once part of the country. Each one of them has asked if Andres has coke, as if direct descendant of Pablo Escobar. Nina and Andres sneak out for a little bit for a chat, and Andres asks Nina if she wants to come with him and start over. Nina refuses and tells Andres that it was Luther who gave her a job when nobody would, and he’s one of the kindest men she’s ever known. Luther soon takes Andres out to his barn, where his friend is waiting to inform him about his car. As soon as they enter, Luther knocks Andres out. When Nina comes looking for him, Luther tells her that he left, and Latino men are notorious for stunts like this.
What happened to Andres?
A couple of days after his disappearance, Nina hears muffled shouting from the basement. Luther keeps a strict watch on Nina, as all her attempts at sneaking into the basement are fruitless. Nina finally gets her shot when Luther goes to town, and she breaks the basement’s door down with an axe. She finds Andres, whose eyes have been gouged out. Nina takes Andres and Isabella to try and escape, but Andres is in no condition to hike in the dense forest. Luther catches up to them and ties Nina down, while there’s no sign of Andres anymore. Nina begs and cries for days, but Luther only visits her to provide food and the special tea, as he’s waiting for the harvest to set her free. The day of the harvest is here, and Luther orders Nina to strip completely naked before he forcefully makes her bathe. Nina finds herself at the dinner table, where all of Luther’s friends are sitting, along with Mary. She’s horrified when Luther presents the turkey of this Thanksgiving, which is Andres’ decapitated head. Nina pukes on the woman sitting next to her and ruins the purity of their harvest.
Does Nina kill the cannibals?
The harvest dinner is cancelled, and everybody whines at Luther for making Nina sit at the dinner table. Luther locks Nina and Isabella in the basement, and that’s one of the dumbest things I’ve ever seen a fictional cannibal do. Isabella gives a pair of scissors to her mama, and Nina sets herself free. She takes the pair of scissors and a wrench and tapes them onto her thighs. Isabella shows her the rifle, and Nina kills one of the cannibals when he comes back into the home to take his car keys. Nina then takes Maya down with a knife and slits her throat. Unable to run into the dark forest, she hides inside the barn, where she sees severed human body parts hanging all around her. Luther comes dressed as the antler man, and Nina fires at his arm. She tells him that she doesn’t exist in this country, and nobody will look for her when she kills him. Unfortunately for Nina, she runs out of ammo, and Luther locks her inside a small wooden structure. He then goes into the house to look for Isabella and finds her hiding inside the closet. Nina manages to set herself free, and she brawls with him, and Luther’s antlers break and get scattered on the floor. Luther gets sick of Nina’s resistance and tries to choke her to death. Nina got stabbed by one of the antlers in her leg, and she now pulls it out to stab Luther at least 50 times. “No one touches my baby,” she exclaims as she sits on top of Luther’s corpse. The movie ends with Nina driving out of the hellhole with her baby.
Inspired by true events, the directors really explored the unusual number of missing immigrants in the United States with a proper fictional take. The many tropes of the movie don’t bug you much, as the secluded property works wonderfully with the script’s appeal. A humble independent movie based on cannibals, I’d totally recommend the film to anyone who hasn’t watched it yet.
