Adam Driver and Andrew Garfield Star in First Trailer for Martin Scorcese's Silence

Posted on November 23, 2016

The first trailer for Martin Scorcese's highly anticipated trailer for Silence has been released. The film is based on the novel by Shusaku Endo, the renowned Japanese author who was runner up for the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1994. A Roman Catholic, Shusaku wrote about the themes of suffering, faith, Christianity and being an outsider in one's own society.

The story is set in 1639 and is based on actual historical figures. Two Portugese Jesuit Catholic priests, Sebastião Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) and Francisco Garrpe (Adam Driver) set off for Japan to find out what happened to their mentor, Father Cristovao Ferreira (Liam Neeson). At that time in Japan, Christians were forced to practice their religion in secret because Christianity was outlawed. The Christians were brutally tortured and persecuted for their beliefs.

The priests know that their journey is very dangerous, but they make it any way. The novel explores the theme of a mostly silent God who does not eliminate suffering for mankind, but who instead suffers along with him. In order to save their parishioners, the priests must wrestle with some devastating moral and spiritual dilemmas.

The film also stars Ciaran Hinds, Tadanobu Asano, Nana Komatsu, Shin'ya Tsukamoto and Yoshi Oida and will hit theaters on December 23, 2016, in time for Oscar consideration. Take a look:

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