A One Mann’s Movies review of “Retreat” (From the 2025 London Film Festival). (2025, 3.5*, ’12A’).
One of the most innovative films I’ve seen at the LFF, “Retreat” is almost entirely without traditional dialogue: there are only about 4 or 5 lines near the end of the film. All of the rest of the conversations are conducted in British Sign Language (BSL), with a bit in German Sign Language…. who even knew there were national variants!?
One Mann’s Movies Rating:
Plot:
Eva (Anne Zander) arrives from Germany to Chilmark – a remote deaf commune in the UK. There she meets Matt (James Joseph Boyle), son of the owner Mia (Sophie Stone), who has been there for as long as he can remember. But Eva causes turmoil in Matt’s life as he begins to question his way of life.
Certification:
UK: NR; US: NR. (The film has not yet been rated by the BBFC but I would expect it to be a ’12A’: there is some violence in the finale but not enough I would have thought to merit a ’15’.)
Talent:
Starring: Sophie Stone, Anne Zander, Ace Mahbaz, James Joseph Boyle, Tianah Hodding, David Kukadia,
Brian Duffy, Anna Seymore, Naomi Postawa-Husar, Carol Ellis, Adam Bassett, James Cassius Nicholson.
Directed by: Ted Evans.
Written by: Ted Evans.
Running Time: 1h 47m.
Summary:
Positives:
- The innovation of the sign language dialog is novel and worthy of note.
- The story is well-crafted showing the destabilisation of Matt matched with his attraction to Eva.
Negatives:
- The ending is a bit of a downer.
- Those who avoid films with sub-titles will not be happy (even though it is in English!)
Full Review of “Retreat”:
Institutionalisation.
As the film starts, we see Eva (Anne Zander) arriving at the commune and being introduced to the manager Mia (Sophie Stone) and the deputy manager Tracy (Anna Seymore). It becomes clear that this is an institution with very clear rules: it’s Mia’s way or the highway. Phones are discouraged and not allowed in the common areas; ONLY deaf people are allowed at the site (not even CODAs allowed); and ’emergency’ drills are regularly held with “red/orange” lights signifying a lockdown situation where everybody has to assemble in a basement safe room. (This is torture for Eva who is claustrophobic and suffers panic attacks.)
Later on, we realise how extreme Mia’s views are when a relationship between Patrick (Adam Bassett) and Martha (Naomi Postawa-Husar) comes to light and Mia takes drastic action.
The Way.
New arrivals are subject to an initiation process called “The Way” which re-educates them in a new approach to their deafness and way of life. Through indoctrination, the team cut away her old life (physically cutting away the multiple beads around her wrists, which clearly mean a lot to her) and have it drummed into her that deafness is not a deficiency in any way. The sessions include ‘group screaming’ sessions.
Some of the sequences here have extraordinary sound design, with terrifyingly loud and deep bass resonances
Matt’s realisation.
The script is a clever one. Matt and Eva get closer and while Matt initially thinks that Eva is the different one – coming from Germany – he gradually comes to realise that HE is the odd one out in the community. While Eva talks of the Japanese tattoo she got on holiday there and of the relationship with her hearing boyfriend, Matt realises that he’s never been allowed to travel anywhere, or indeed has never had any engagements with hearing people at all. This leads to conflict between the mother and son.
The third-reel act perhaps oversteps the mark a tad in terms of credibility, but its still a fun ride getting to the conclusion. The ending though is not a happy one: this classifies I think as a ‘Father Ted film‘.
Anne Zander
It’s a really good ensemble cast of deaf actors that has been gathered together for this film. But the standout for me was Anne Zander playing Eva. The deaf, Berlin-born actress has a terrific screen-presence and really carries the film with her personality.
Sub-titles.
Clearly, as there are only about 5 lines of spoken English dialogue in the whole film, the majority of the film has subtitles, which will clearly not make some cinema-goers happy.
Summary Thoughts:
A really unusual film, this could have been gimmicky with no substance behind it. But Ted Evans dodges that bullet by delivering a story that is interesting and engaging too. The film is actually based on Ted’s 2013 short film of the same name.
As far as I can see, there is no confirmed date for a cinema release, but as this has BBC Film as a finance contributor, at the very least UK viewers should get to see this on the box at some point.
Where to watch?
Trailer:
At the time of writing, there is no formal trailer for this film. But a clip of the film is available on X (Twitter) here.
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