Shot in Israel, The Silence of the Poet captures the mood of emotional devastation that has left many Israelis paralyzed in the face of continuing wars and the threat of extinction. This gentle, atmospheric film focuses on a poet who has put down his pen, ostensibly to care for his retarded young son but obviously due to a more global sense of futility: the sense that words and art are powerless to change anything. As the son grows up, the relationship is reversed, and by age 17, it is he who is taking care of his aging father, conniving to get him to write again, and in the process breaking out on his own for the first time. Lilienthal's approach is one of respectful observation, allowing two understated and moving portrayals to emerge: that of the backward son, Gideon, played by American actor Len Ramras; and of the poet, Joram, played by a non-professional actor, the Austrian writer Jakov Lind.