THE REEL: A Quiet Place

After the comparisons that were being thrown around about Bird Box’s similarity to A Quiet Place, I had to check it out for myself.

In case you didn’t get it, word was that Bird Box is an imitation of A Quiet Place, and not a good one. In my opinion, this might have been a brilliant scheme by the marketing team behind the movie, after seeing the popularity of the Netflix movie.

A Quiet Place is a post-apocalyptic horror drama. A family lives on the outskirts of a tiny town that has been deserted following the invasion of alien creatures. The creatures have terrorised the world, seemingly unstoppable as they killed off most of its population. The aliens move fast, are very strong and it takes more than just a bullet to kill them.

BE SILENT

The only seemingly way to survive in the world now is by being very quiet while going about everyday things. Lee, his wife Evelyn (Emily Blunt), daughter Regan (Millicent Simmonds), and sons Marcus (Noah Jupe) and Beau (Cade Woodward) have perfected the art of silence even in communication. Lee has created paths for his family to places they would usually frequent. They also don’t stray into unknown places or use untested parts of the house.

There’s really not much I can say about this movie’s plot, except that besides everything that’s going on, the family stays a traditional family unit with Lee being the head, protector and provider. He sets the agenda for the family even as he tries to think up ways to defeat this seemingly invincible enemy as he looks out for his family. Evelyne is the nurturer, having to explain to the children why their father sometimes seems harsh or too strict when he doesn’t let them do what they want. She is also the calming point for Lee as she sometimes tries to get him off the high alertness so he can enjoy the moments without thinking about the dangers surrounding them. The children are also going through the same issues of feeling that their parents do not understand them.

The most riveting thing about the movie is that it is mostly a silent movie. It takes you to the days when cinema was all about acting, and not necessarily the audible dialogue between actors, to convey the message. I praise the actors for being able to rely on expressing emotions and body language and still make the movie very exciting and enjoyable.

ENJOYABLE

Considering that the two actors Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe are very young actors who were able to carry out their roles almost to perfection, then you know that actor John Krasinski is just one outstanding director. He wrote the screenplay and acts with his real-life wife Emily Blunt, who co-stars in the movie. At the age of 39, John seems to have a very bright future in directing.

My eyebrows were raised when Lee would get so much sand to make kilometres of paths, and how he dug it up or collected it without making sounds louder than your feet landing on tarmac as you walk.

Also, in the film’s opening scene, their youngest son, Beau, can be seen and heard running around a convenience store (mini supermarket) yet the aliens apparently don’t hear this. But in the rest of the movie, the aliens seem to be roused by sounds one would have considered softer, compared to that.

But, boy, did I enjoy this movie. I have always said there are some silent moments in movies that make a movie more exciting. I never thought I would ever get to enjoy a whole movie of such moments. I felt more emotionally attached to the characters, as I was able to lock into their emotional cores and mannerisms more than what they sound like. Sometimes, talking distracts you from appreciating someone for who they really are.

Go catch the movie with a date, a friend or just family, but not with young children or people likely to have nightmares.

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