Review of A Quiet Place (2018) by Mitchell B — 23 Apr 2018

A Quiet Place seems to be the critically acclaimed horror movie of 2018. In modern times most horror films are formulaic, lazy, and just terrible. Hence why the genre is one of the most mocked in the entertainment world. However, every year there's at least one diamond in the rough that gets a lot of attention and is beloved by critics and audiences. A Quiet Place is that movie this year. Does it deserve the praise? For the most part, yes. I don't think it's a masterpiece, but it is a good, fun horror/thriller.

The plot is very simple. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic world. These alien creatures have invaded Earth and somehow have crippled the human population, with the remaining humans in hiding. The creatures hunt by sound, like the creatures in Tremors. So our lead characters have to go about their life making very minimal sound if they are to survive. They do so, until things inevitably go south.

What truly sells this movie is the premise, and execution of it. Because of the circumstances, the majority of the film is very quiet, nearly silent, hence the title. There is very little talking, or even loud noises, until the third act. That is a difficult thing to pull-off but the makers managed to do it. The actors have to convey emotion mainly via facial expressions and sign language. All the actors do a great job at this, even the kids.

Also because of this premise, the tension is also present. The fact that most of the film is near silent makes the loud noises more impactful. If the characters make a single loud noise it could result in death no matter where they are. There's constantly an aura of it is never entirely safe, and one wrong move could be the end of you. This never ending tension makes for an immersive experience, especially in the theatres.

I also like the designs of the creatures. I've seen better, but the design and effects I felt were on-point. The score is standard, but works for what it needs to do.

I do have some personal grips. My issues with the film are some of my problems with both Cloverfield and Signs. I wish they explained where the creatures came from. Are they subterranean creatures that somehow came up to conquer the surface? Were they released by an intelligent alien race was part of an invasion plan? We never get an explanation. Sometimes mystery can work, but here I think there should have been an explanation. Cloverfield had this problem too, though this one a bit more so.

Also the ending, while not bad, falls into the trap any of these type of movies do. It reminds me of the ending of Signs, though not quite as lame as that. Our main characters find out the creatures' weakness in the end. In doing so brings up the question of how no one figured this out before. These creatures don't seem to be tough enough to cripple the entire human race. There has to be more to it, but we aren't given that information.

Overall, despite my personal misgivings, A Quiet Place is a fun, tension-filled horror movie, which is exactly what it meant to be. In that sense the film did its job well. One should definitely check this out in the theatre if possible to get a fuller experience if you're into horror movies like this.