Review:
*Originally written September 2nd, 2018*
Wow, John Krasinski is a real far cry away from his role in the remarkably overrated US remake of The Office. Both in front and behind the camera, he looks to be a talent worth getting excited for. He crafted an excellent little genre film that fully commits to its premise and runs with it.
For a film that has so little dialogue, I'm amazed it was as popular as it has been. I loved the reliance on sign language visual ques, which is fine by me as I watch everything with subtitles anyway, but I can imagine turning off mainstream audiences. Even without much dialogue, there is a ton of characterisation within the lead family. Despite not even learning their names, they are instantly likeable and easy to root for.
Even the child casting is solid, none of the children are annoying or over the top, or do the Richard Curtis thing where the kids are punchably smart and smug for their age. Krasinski and Emily Blunt absolutely own the screen, delivering subtle performances that really pack an emotional punch towards the end. I was a huge fan of Krasinski's Logan like look in the third act.
Outside of his performance, Krasinski pulls every bit of tension he can out of the concept. While the creatures themselves are a disappointing work of CGI (I really wish they kept it more practical), they definitely establish how dangerous they are with a very surprising and shocking scene in the first ten minutes. A film that depends on silence absolutely makes for insane tension, you're constantly on edge whenever something minor happens. It's oddly genius, but simple. See this in the quietest environment you can for maximum effect.
It's also an extremely gorgeous film with a rich colour palette and natural lighting that makes for a beautiful film to look at, which I usually find rare for horror films. It shows that even smaller budget films can look 100x better than ones that cost hundreds of millions to make.
The only major complaint with A Quiet Place is the odd and completely misguided plot reveal early on that completely derails the entire concept. We know early on that Emily Blunt's character is pregnant and we know why these parents would want another kid, but it makes absolutely no sense why they would try in this environment. There's just no part of my brain that can comprehend why these characters would make such a stupid decision.
Due to the huge and unexpected popularity of this, a sequel has obviously been announced (With Krasinski returning in a creative capacity), but it doesn't really need it. The film outs with a brilliant shot teases a sequel, but in that horror film way, you know exactly what it implies and where it is going, so you don't need to show it. Who knows, maybe Krasinski has something genius up his sleeve. I'm cautiously optimistic.
A Quiet Place is fantastic, a near perfectly executed genre film and one of the best of the year. Excellently directed with great performances all around. There is very little not to recommend with A Quiet Place. And it's also less than 90 minutes long and manages to achieve everything it wants to do within that short run-time. Cinema is alive.
9/10 Dans
A Quiet Place is out now on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD now in the UK. With a 4K steelbook available from HMV
Watch the trailer below:
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