Spoiler Free Reviews: A Quiet Place (2018)

By April 5, 2018Movie Reviews
Emily Blunt in A QUIET PLACE, from Paramount Pictures.
By | April 5, 2018

Given the extended history of horror films, as well as how budget friendly the genre tends to be for studios, finding a horror film that can be considered original or unique tends to be relatively difficult; however, this is exactly what A Quiet Place is able to accomplish. And no, this isn’t because the majority of the film is nearly silent with voices and sounds that barely register above a whisper.

Sure, the lack of sound would qualify as a unique take on a genre which typically relies on screams to go along with the gore, but where A Quiet Place succeeds is in the film’s ability for the audience to connect with the characters on a deeper level. Emotions which are brought about from a compelling and relatable subplot that drives the story to an eventual denouement that teeters between elation and deflation in the same manner that the rest of the movie has leading up to the finale.

This emotional satisfaction also helps to detract from the film’s primary gimmick – the lack of spoken dialogue.

And, while this could have made for more issues than some busy sound mixer and sound effects editor (who had to focus even harder on making sure that not only was every sound accounted for, but that it was even more believeable than normal), the lack of most sound not only managed to make sense given the situation, but it also helped lend evidence as to why this particular family was able to survive for as long as they had while also managing to up the tension.

And, in a film already filled with suspense, any sound louder than footsteps on sand became another moment to stay on the edge of the seat.

A Quiet Place hits theaters everywhere April 6, 2018.