A Question of Silence is a 1982 Dutch drama film written and directed by Marleen Gorris

Marleen Gorris

Marleen Gorris is a writer-director from the Netherlands. Gorris is known as an outspoken feminist and supporter of gay and lesbian issues which is reflected in much of her work....

. It stars Edda Barends as Christine M. The plot is about three women, are strangers to each other, who kill a man they do not know.

Plot

Housewife Christine M. tries to shoplift some merchandise but is caught by the male shopkeeper. Christine and two other customers, waitress Annie and secretary Anna, beat the man to death. They are tried with murder and deny the plea of insanity that the male prosecutor and judges assume they should plead.

Cast

• Edda Barends as Christine M.
• Nelly Frijda as Annie
• Henriëtte Tol as Anna
• Cox Habbema as Janine van den Bos
• Eddie Brugman as Ruud van den Bos
• Hans Croiset as Rechter
• Erik Plooyer as Officier van Justitie

Distribution

A Question of Silence was shown at the 1982 Toronto Film Festival. That year it won the Grand Prix at the Créteil International Women's Film Festival

Créteil International Women's Film Festival

The Créteil International Women's Film Festival is an annual event in Créteil, Paris, France founded by Jackie Buet in 1978 to showcase the directing talents of female filmmakers who, at the time, had difficulty getting their films adequately distributed. The first festival was held in 1979 in Sceaux...

 and the Golden Calf at the Nederlands Film Festival.