Movie Review: Sinister and unhinged, James McAvoy is the weekend host from hell in ‘Speak No Evil’

Quick. Has there ever been a horror film set in a country home with a decent cell signal?

Nope, and there’s no signal at Paddy and Ciara’s house, either, deep in the English countryside. Soon, that land line will be cut, too, but we’re getting ahead of ourselves.

Paddy and Ciara are that fun-but-somewhat-odd British couple whom Louise and Ben, early in “Speak No Evil,” meet on their idyllic Tuscan family holiday. Americans based in London, Louise and Ben are at loose ends, with both job and relationship issues. And so, when the new acquaintances write to invite them for a country weekend, they decide to go.

After all, how bad could it be?

Don’t answer that. There are many such moments in the first two-thirds of “Speak No Evil,” a Hollywood remake of the 2022 Danish film, here starring a deeply menacing James McAvoy. Moments where Louise and Ben, out of mere politeness and social convention, act against their instincts, which tell them something is wrong – very wrong.

Director James Watkins and especially his excellent troupe of actors, adult and children alike, do a nice job of building the tension, slowly but surely. Until all bloody hell breaks loose, of course. And then, in its third act, “Speak No Evil” becomes an entertaining but routine horror flick, with predictable results.

But for a while, it’s a way more intelligent film. And the jumpy moments work — I'll confess to literally springing out of my seat when someone uneventfully turned on a power drill.

We begin in stunning Tuscany, where Louise (Mackenzie Davis, in the film’s most accessible and empathetic performance) and Ben (Scoot McNairy, all nerves and insecurity) are vacationing with 11-year-old daughter Agnes (Alix West Lefler). At the pool, they meet Paddy (McAvoy) and Ciara (Aisling Franciosi), a British couple with a disabled son, Ant, apparently born without a proper tongue.

One day in town, Paddy offers Agnes a ride on his Vespa. Louise is frightened to see her daughter disappear on the motorbike with a strange man, but it would be churlish to say no, right?

In briefly sketched backstories, we learn that Louise and Ben moved to London for Ben’s job, but he was soon downsized out. As for Paddy, all we know is he’s a doctor.

At least, we think he is. The Americans, accepting the weekend invitation back in England, arrive at the secluded country home in dead of night. Immediately something feels off. The rooms are quirky but musty, the sheets stained. How can a doctor live like this, Louise asks? Ben brushes off her concern, quipping that even Downton Abbey is in terrible shape.

When the couple cooks dinner, Paddy proudly explains they’ve butchered their prize goose in their guests’ honor. He proffers Louise a forkful — even though he well knows she’s a vegetarian. Louise is disgusted but, politely, takes a bite.

Daughter Agnes, too, is freaked out. She’s being made to sleep on the floor next to Ant (Dan Hough, poignant in a role with no words.) And the next evening, when everyone dresses for a special dinner out, Paddy and Ciara inform Louise and Ben that the kids will stay home with a strange male babysitter. “We’ve had mannies before,” Ben tells Louise, unconvincingly.

Soon, though, we have the obligatory attempt to flee, followed by the “Oh no, we have to go back” moment — you know, where you’re yelling: “No!” But return the family does.

In perhaps the movie’s most effective scene, the two kids have put together a dance routine. The parents sit back proudly to watch, but repeatedly, Paddy stops the routine to admonish, brutally, his son, telling him he’s out of rhythm. McAvoy, a terrific actor who has made villainy part of his potent toolbox, is truly chilling as he becomes unhinged by his son’s inability to keep time.

Then there’s the scene fans of “The Shining” will recognize as the “Here’s Johnny,” Jack Nicholson moment. By then, everything’s gone off the rails, and it’s time for the blood to flow, predictably.

If there’s a moral here, it’s to trust those instincts when things feel wrong. But if movie characters did that, the horror genre would not exist.

Still, there's some satisfaction to be had, especially in the creative use of household implements to inflict pain and death. Revenge, they say, is a dish best served cold — except in horror films, where it is served raw and bloody, with a side of toxic cleaning fluid.

“Speak No Evil,” a Universal Pictures and Blumhouse release, has been Rated R by the Motion Picture Association “for some strong violence, language, some sexual content and brief drug use. “ Running time: 110 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four.

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Dan Hough, left, and Alix West Lefler in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Scoot McNairy, left, and James McAvoy in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows promotional art for "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows James McAvoy, left, and Aisling Franciosi in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows, from left, Alix West Lefler, Mackenzie Davis and Scoot McNairy in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Alix West Lefler, from left, Scoot McNairy and Mackenzie Davis in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Dan Hough, left, and Alix West Lefler in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Mackenzie Davis in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows James McEvoy in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows James McEvoy in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

This image released by Universal Pictures shows James McEvoy in a scene from "Speak No Evil." (Universal Pictures via AP)

BEIRUT (AP) — Hundreds of handheld pagers exploded near simultaneously across Lebanon and in parts of Syria on Tuesday, wounding members of the militant group Hezbollah, the Iranian ambassador and dozens of other people. Officials pointed the finger at Israel in what appeared to be a sophisticated, remote attack at a time of rising tensions across the Lebanon border.

A Hezbollah official who spoke on condition of anonymity told The Associated Press that “several hundred” people, including members of the group, were wounded in different parts of Lebanon when their handheld pagers exploded. He said a few Hezbollah fighters were also wounded in Syria when the pagers they were carrying exploded, and said it was believed to be an Israeli attack.

It wasn’t immediately clear if people were killed.

The Associated Press reached out to the Israeli military, which declined to comment.

Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency, close to the country’s powerful Revolutionary Guard, said on its Telegram channel that Mojtaba Amani, Iran’s ambassador in Lebanon, has a superficial injury and is under observation at a hospital. Another semi-official Mehr news agency, also on its Telegram channel, reported that Amani was wounded by a pager explosion.

Photos and videos from Beirut’s southern suburbs circulating on social media and in local media showed people lying on the pavement with wounds on their hands or near their pants pockets.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah previously warned the group’s members not to carry cellphones, saying that they could be used by Israel to track their movements and to carry out targeted strikes.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry called on all hospitals to be on alert to take in emergency patients and for people who own pagers to get away from them. It also asked health workers to avoid using wireless devices.

AP photographers at area hospitals said the emergency rooms were overloaded with patients, many of them with injuries to their limbs, some in serious condition.

The state-run National News Agency said hospitals in southern Lebanon, the eastern Bekaa Valley and Beirut’s southern suburbs — all areas where Hezbollah has a strong presence — had called on people to donate blood of all types.

The news agency reported that in Beirut’s southern suburbs and other areas “the handheld pagers system was detonated using advanced technology, and dozens of injuries were reported.”

The Hezbollah official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media said the explosions were the result of “a security operation that targeted the devices.”

“The enemy (Israel) stands behind this security incident,” the official said, without elaborating. He added that the new pagers that Hezbollah members were carrying had lithium batteries that apparently exploded.

Lithium batteries, when overheated, can smoke, melt and even catch on fire. Rechargeable lithium batteries are used in consumer products ranging from cellphones and laptops to electric cars. Lithium battery fires can burn up to 590 C (1,100 F).

The incident comes at a time of heightened tensions between Lebanon and Israel. The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and Israeli forces have been clashing near-daily for more than 11 months against the backdrop of war between Israel and Hezbollah ally Hamas in Gaza.

The clashes have killed hundreds in Lebanon and dozens in Israel and displaced tens of thousands on both sides of the border. On Tuesday, Israel said that halting Hezbollah’s attacks in the north to allow residents to return to their homes is now an official war goal.

Israel has killed Hamas militants in the past with booby trapped cellphones and it’s widely believed to have been behind the Stuxnet computer virus attack on Iran’s nuclear program in 2010.

Abby Sewell and Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut, and Josef Federman, in Jerusalem, contributed to this report.

Police officers inspect a car inside of which a hand-held pager exploded, Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Police officers inspect a car inside of which a hand-held pager exploded, Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Police officers inspect a car inside of which a hand-held pager exploded, Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A Civil Defense first-responder carries a wounded man whose handheld pager exploded at al-Zahraa hospital in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Civil Defense first-responders carry a wounded man whose handheld pager exploded at al-Zahraa hospital in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)