such a heart-warming,soothing, sweet and humane story held by 2 wonderful dedicated, honest and gracious actors. in fact I've never liked Tim robins and i haven't seen many of his films but his performance completely swept me off my feet and made me dream of him as the perfect man, a man who feels and understands the pain of others and quietly delves in and take it away, the actress playing Hannah is always great in dramatic roles but her she was beautiful in every scene and when she smiled in spite of her suffering she melted my heart and the ending was more than satisfying. i forgot to mention the minor characters who were absolutely amazing and fitting especially the cook

In her daily routine as a factory worker and city dweller the dissociated Hannah portrays a torture survivor's shame. She has withdrawn to a safe place within herself, frequently turns off her hearing aid, and does not interact with co-workers or her environment. Co-workers have complained to Hannah's supervisor about her behavior. He praises Hannah for her work habits and her consistency over her four years at the factory then directs her to take a month's vacation.During her vacation on the coast of Ireland she overhears a phone conversation about a burn victim on an offshore oil drilling platform who needs round-the-clock nursing care on the platform until he is stable enough to make the trip to the burn center. We learn that Hannah is a trained nurse who has worked in a burn center as she finds it within herself to react to this victim's need and agrees to provide the necessary care for the 2 week stabilization period.After a short helicopter flight and a brief introduction to her temporarily blinded burn patient she begins the tasks of cleaning, feeding, and providing medical care. They awkwardly make conversation. Through the labor of each conversation and the effort of each interaction we learn a little more about them. In time, they are able to connect to poignantly share their survivor's stories and then their shame. They are able to provide one another with a critical human support element that is necessary for each to move on with their lives just before Josef, the burn victim, is transported to the burn clinic.Well into his recovery Josef is released from the burn clinic at which time he is given a backpack (Hannah's backpack) that was inadvertently checked in with his personal property. He reluctantly accepts it and leaves the clinic. Then Josef meets with the wife of a co-worker who died in the fire on the offshore oil platform to bring closure to this part of his life. Afterwards, he begins his search for Hannah, his nurse.Josef searches for Hannah from addresses found on letters in her backpack. His search takes him to Copenhagen where we learn more about Hannah from an Amnesty International Worker who provides counseling to torture victims. He then travels to her town in Ireland where he finds her outside of the factory. With much trepidation, each re-connects with their humanity and with one another.This movie tells a story that contrasts the worst of human behavior against the best of human behavior in a way that engages us at the very core of our being. .

Even though each character is surrounded by a shroud of mystery, somehow through these strange unfortunate events we are given the chance to know them better than anyone will. Forced to take holiday after years without taking a break, Hanna (played by Sara Polley) gives up her vacation to take care of a man severely burned on an oil rig. Honestly the plot comes second to the exploration into these amazingly complex characters. Every character has such a story to tell yet throughout most of the film we are only given small glimpses of who they really are. However, Hanna's guard is eventually let down and she reveals a shocking secret from her past that gives light to her being.Sara Polley has her most shining moments in cinema to date... Until this film, to me she was always that chick from 'Go'. Now she has crossed the line into a fine actress. Tim Robbins also does a great job, though I have come to expect just that from him. The supporting cast does not disappoint either and gives applaud-able performances all around.This is probably one of the most endearing and enthralling films where not much happens, however, because of the slow manner in which each character is revealed and miraculously developed I found myself demanding to know more during every second of each scene. 'The Secret Life Of Words' is a must see by those that favor strong character development and don't mind a slow moving film as long as its rewarding in the end.

Second time around collaboration with writer-director Isabel Coixet (previously in "My Life Without Me" 2003), Sarah Polley again gave us a stunning subdued performance portraying 'Hanna' (wears a hearing aid) with possible tough turmoil lodged within, seems rather be alone by herself. Tim Robbins matched with equal subtlety in his performance as 'Josef,' wounded both physically (burns and temporarily blind) and within, possible tenderness to share? The chemistry between the two talented actors made Coixet's emotional challenging script complete. I smiled when Polley's Hanna started to let go a little, giving herself a chance to taste Simon the cook's Epicurean food. Robbin's Josef being confined to bed and unable to see, conveyed volumes through his 'listening' facial expressions, movement of his head, and tone of his voice, cracking jokes even in pain. The pace is almost in real-time (may require some viewers to be patient and take in stride the events as they occur). Nothing is rushed - we are given time to ponder with Hanna and Josef, appreciating the growing relationship, closing the gap, trusting each other.The story setting includes life on an oil rig (off the coast of Northern Ireland at the time.) We get a sense of how each member of the team past their time after the alleged accident rendering the rig operation to shut down. The supporting cast, including the goose, complement the sketches of the story. Javier Cámara (Pedro Almodóvar's "Talk to Her" 2002) is Simon the ship's Spanish cook who befriends Hanna; Julie Christie (whom Polley directed in her directorial debut "Away from Her" 2006) is Inge the Danish therapist friend to Hanna. Sverre Anker Ousdal (I remember him from "Kitchen Stories" 2003) is the Norwegian ship's in-charge Dimitri who imparted his wisdom to Hanna: "Deep down, everything is an accident." Yes, the words (and the silence in between) to the dialog and scenes are well-thought out. Sample of a few are: "Maybe you are not. But I am." Hanna to Scott when he tried to explain that he's "not prejudiced." "How does one live with what happened?" "How does one live with the dead?" Josef asking Hanna. "I will learn to swim, Hanna, I swear. I will learn to swim." Josef to Hanna.The insertion of music and selected songs & lyrics*, juxtaposed with complete silence are aptly choreographed. And when you reached the end of the film, you may want to go back to the beginning credit roll and try to catch the 'secret words' that transiently appears with the display of each name and title. Some of the words are: silence, friend, sound, cut, pain, affection, scream, hope, child, ever, love, minutes, time, rain, believe, hope - ends with Coixet's name: always - hope. I rated THE SECRET LIFE OF WORDS at 9 out of 10: excellent script, thoughtful drama, superb acting, cinematography, production, editing both sound and visuals, music & songs and silence & dialog considerations, cultural diversity and the tough subject at heart, raising awareness and hope for the future. Kudos to the producers, Focus Features, Spanish and French production companies - especially to filmmaker Isabel Coixet. *song & lyrics of note: David Byrne's "Tiny Apocalypse"; Tom Waits "All the World is Green"