--- title: "Silent Friend: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/silent-friend/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/silent-friend" critics_score: 77 critics_reviews: 10 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Silent Friend (2026): what the critics said Critics' score 77 from 10 reviews: 8 positive, 2 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics respond warmly to Silent Friend, praising its patient attention to connections between people and plants. The strongest agreement concerns the sensory craft: tactile cinematography, layered sound and an immersive score make the ginkgo tree and other plant life feel vivid and emotionally significant. Performances also draw praise, with Tony Leung’s restraint singled out for giving the film an emotional centre, while several reviews admire its curiosity and compassion. The reservations concern pace and the balance between the interwoven stories. Some critics find the slowness absorbing; others describe it as trying, and there are doubts about how convincingly the separate strands fit together. Little White Lies particularly favours the intimate, sunlit 1972 sequences, finding the other timelines stiff by comparison. The spread runs from enthusiasm to qualified appreciation rather than outright rejection, with unresolved questions registering as both a source of wonder and a limitation. ## Variety — Guy Lodge Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 5 September 2025. Festival review. Lodge finds the film enchanting, original and richly sensory, praising Enyedi’s imaginative, patient vision of human connection with plant life. He especially singles out the tactile cinematography and immersive sound and score for creating its vivid, symphonic atmosphere. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2025/film/reviews/silent-friend-review-1236508896/) ## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 6 May 2026. Ebiri finds the film mesmerizing and unforgettable despite its slow pace. He especially praises how Enyedi’s cinematography makes the gingko tree’s hidden life feel vivid and emotionally resonant. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/in-mesmerizing-silent-friend-tony-leung-befriends-a-tree.html) ## Los Angeles Times — Robert Abele Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 15 May 2026. The critic finds the film fluid, charming and quietly poetic, praising its belief in curiosity as a force for progress. He especially singles out the sublime gingko tree and the cast’s entrancing performances. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2026-05-15/silent-friend-review-gingko-tony-leung-chiu-wai-ildiko-enyedi) ## The New Yorker — Justin Chang Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 8 May 2026. Chang finds the film an enchanting, compassionate meditation on human relationships with plants, though its interwoven storytelling can feel arbitrary. He especially praises the performances, singling out Tony Leung and the ginkgo tree as memorable scene partners. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-current-cinema/a-tree-grows-in-marburg-in-silent-friend) ## IndieWire — Leila Latif Rating B. 5 September 2025. Festival review. Latif finds the film profound and beautiful but sometimes painfully slow. Tony Leung’s magnetic, restrained performance is singled out as its emotional center. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/silent-friend-review-tony-leung-1235149183/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Jordan Mintzer Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 6 September 2025. Festival review. Mintzer finds the film an enigmatic, brainy art-house experience that gradually grows on viewers open to its style. He praises its striking cinematography and layered sound design, which bring its unusual connections between people and plants to life. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/silent-friend-review-tony-leung-lea-seydoux-1236362226/) ## Screen Daily — Jonathan Romney Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 5 September 2025. Festival review. Romney presents the film as a contemplative, nature-focused work, suggesting a positive response. The headline singles out its paean to nature and Tony Leung Chiu-Wai’s starring performance. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/silent-friend-review-hungarian-filmmaker-ildiko-enyedis-paean-to-nature-stars-tony-leung-chiu-wai/5208573.article) ## Little White Lies — Sophie Monks Kaufman Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. The critic finds the film a sophisticated, if meandering, meditation on connection between humans and nature. She especially praises the sun-drenched 1972 sequences and their intimate cinematography, while noting that the other timelines feel stiff by comparison. [Read the review](https://www.lwlies.com/venice-film-festival/silent-friend-first-look-review) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 7 May 2026. The URL identifies this as a review of the film. The page is blocked, so the critic’s verdict and specific praise or complaints cannot be determined. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/07/movies/silent-friend-review.html) ## Deadline — Stephanie Bunbury Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 5 September 2025. Festival review. Bunbury finds the film beautiful, elusive and full of lasting wonder. She praises its sensual images of the ginkgo and germinating seeds, while noting that its stories leave their questions unresolved. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2025/09/silent-friend-review-ildiko-enyedi-movie-venice-1236509151/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/silent-friend.md