When I first saw the trailer for A Quiet Place, I thought it was a damn fine idea for a horror film. A creature that hunts by sound. Survival is only possible if you’re silent (or as silent as possible.) Otherwise, one loud noise and you’re toast. Thankfully, the movie lives up to the promise of the trailer.
As the film begins, we’re introduced to the Abbotts, a family living amongst the creatures in what appears to be a post-apocalyptic world. They’ve carved out a rural existence amongst these sound-seeking hunters by using sign language to communicate and soundproofing what they can on their farm. Some of their inventions are quite creative.
The creatures are blind, hunt by sound, and definitely do not look like they’re from this planet. Over the course of the movie, we’re given the rules of how to avoid being caught by one of these swift-moving monsters. I don’t want to spoil the film any further but, if you’ve seen the trailer, you know all of that already.
John Krasinski, who plays the father, Lee, also directed and co-wrote the screenplay. He gives a nuanced performance. But it is Emily Blunt, Krasinski’s real-life and on-screen wife, who really delivers the goods. Because none of the actors do much talking, there is a lot of attention paid to gestures, eye movements, and facial expressions along with emotive signing.
A Quiet Place has an incredibly tense atmosphere not only because there’s little dialogue but because there’s barely any music. 90% of the film is just natural sound. (Or as natural as the Foley artists could create.) Krasinski, as director, could have taken the easy way out and used the silence as an excuse for plentiful cheap jump scares but, to his credit, this film builds honest tension and delivers scares in a multitude of ways. The most effective of which is sheer dread.
My only real issue with A Quiet Place is that it doesn’t always play by its own rules when dealing with the creatures’ hearing. Some noises that wouldn’t seem to trigger the creatures do, while others don’t. It’s a minor quibble and in no way ruins the movie. It’s just that when a film gives you such a specific set of rules, it’s a bit disappointing when the script (or maybe, in this case, the volume control on my remote) doesn’t play 100% fair.
A Quiet Place is easily one of my favorite movies so far this year and a definite new entry into my “must see horror films of this decade” list.
4.5 out of 5.0 stars
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