Providence

The idea of a contemporary silent movie set to a music score is not necessarily bad—it worked pretty well a few years ago for the Oscar-winning The Artist—but Providence is a far cheesier effort, a story of missed love connections that is complemented by a teeth-grinding soundtrack of barely tolerable torch songs, anthems, swaths of jazz and rock, and tinkling piano. In telling the tale of lost opportunities for romance between shy humdrum photographer Rachel (Stacey Bradshaw as the teen version, Juli Tapken as the adult) and overly selfless minister Mitchell (Josh Allen and Rich Swingle), writer-director Sharon Wilharm eschews dialogue and other sounds, relying instead on expressive performances from the actors and music. Unfortunately, no one here seems to know what it means to deliver a wordless performance that actually communicates clear emotions, and the music doesn't so much evoke mood or tone as scream at the audience what they should be feeling. An awkward film about two clueless people who take half their lives to get together, this is not recommended. (T. Keogh)