Director: John Krasinski
Starring: John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe
Rated: 14A
Running Time: 1 Hr., 30 Mins
I have no idea how this movie nearly flew under my radar. A Quiet Place should have easily been on my ten most anticipated movies of the spring and winter instead of titles like Insidious: The Last Key, Annihilation or The Cloverfield Paradox. Perhaps the precious little build up and hype was the secret of its success. Whatever the reason, it was a pleasant surprise while those aforementioned titles (along with Winchester) were bitter disappointments.
But one thing is clear, more studios should learn from A Quiet Place’s example and invest more time in making a nuanced, quality product than overhyping a dud.
Video: Paramount Pictures
Human civilization had come to a standstill at the hands of apparently indestructible monsters that hunt by sound. Entire towns stand empty as survivors have fled to the woods or underground. The sounds of daily life that once filled the world has been replaced by a frightening, tense silence.
A small family has managed to survive nearly two years in this new world. Communicating via sign language, they have nearly mastered soundless living. But every day is a dangerous new challenge and with a newborn on the way and every call to the outside world met with silence, life is becoming more difficult. Their courage, ingenuity and will to live is soon tested when the new kings of Earth’s food chain discover their home.
And the monsters are hungry.
A Quiet Place’s brilliance is two fold. It manages to use the sometimes overbearing silence (there are maybe two dozen lines of audio dialogue in the entire movie) to create an atmosphere of desperate tension. Using the omnipresent quiet and some cleverly inserted music, the film uses the sound (or lack of) to wind up the intensity. It also reveals how much our world depends on sound and how we take the pleasures of speech and music for granted. At times the silence becomes claustrophobic.
The second is how well the actors sell their roles as well as the authenticity of the world they live in. Their pain is intimate and each one is burdened with restless guilt. John Krasinski pulls impressive double duty, directing his co-stars to communicate through sing language, body language and facial expressions while also portraying a father desperate to keep his family safe in a world where a whisper can get you killed. The chemistry between him and real life wife Emily Blunt translates easily to the big screen, further selling the bond the family shares.
But the real performance to watch is Millicent Simmonds as the oldest daughter. She brings just the right mix of guilt, defiance and willful stubbornness to her role.
Another nice thing about A Quiet Place is the characters aren’t perfect; they make mistakes and their failings have dire consequences (as we see in the opening scene). The audience is quickly invested enough to genuinely care about the characters as a result.
There’s been a lot of hype surrounding this film and I’ve sung its praises pretty heavily, but it isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea. The pacing is slow at times (action junkies probably aren’t going to like A Quiet Place) but it uses the down time to tell its story and reveal more about its characters.
A Quiet Place isn’t for everyone, but fans of genuine thrillers and intimate, character driven storytelling with a dark side won’t mind paying the price of admission.
Image: Paramount Pictures
