Whilst it's easy to get snooty about the complainants not appreciating the film, the marketing has been a touch on the misleading side. This trailer, for instance, while conspicuously lacking in dialogue, doesn't actually make any reference to the film being in the silent mode, and the TV-spots have been similarly cagey.
This isn't the only BAFTA-nominated film to provoke ire by defying audience expectations. In October last year The Guardian reported that a woman in Oakland, Michigan, was taking the distributors of neo-noir thriller Drive to court because the film "bore very little similarity to a chase, or race action film... having very little driving in the motion picture".
Anyone finding themselves in a similar situation should note that, in the above cinema at least, they are "happy to offer guests a refund on their film choice is they raise concern with a member of staff within 10 minutes of the film starting". Good advice, but anyone taking it up might well miss out on some excellent films that take a while to get going.
