A Quiet Place: A Nerve-Wracking and Terrifying Nightmare
- Cory Draper
- Apr 9, 2018
- 3 min read
A Quiet Place is this year’s Get Out. It’s a relatively small horror movie that sort of came out of nowhere. It’s directed by someone with little experience behind the camera. It made a huge splash with audiences. And it turns out to be one of the year’s best movies. A Quiet Place is spectacular. It’s also incredibly terrifying.
Credit: Paramount Pictures / "A Quiet Place"
And no, it’s not a Cloverfield movie. When the first trailer landed, quite a few people speculated it might be the next surprise addition to the Cloverfield movie universe.
I myself humored the idea for a while. But I’m letting you know now, it’s not. I’m sorry if you somehow consider that a spoiler. But it’s better to go into this movie knowing it has nothing to do with Cloverfield. A Quiet Place is it’s own entity. And that’s part of what makes it so amazing.
Credit: Paramount Pictures / "A Quiet Place"
A Quiet Place is directed by the incredibly likable, John Krasinski (best known for his role in The Office. He also stars in the movie alongside his (real-life) wife, Emily Blunt, along with Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe, who play their two kids. The family of four lives in a post-apocalyptic world where everyone left alive is constantly hunted by creatures that will kill you at the slightest sound.
Credit: Paramount Pictures / "A Quiet Place"
To survive, the family has adapted to living in complete silence. They talk to each other in sign language. They navigate their farm on trails of meticulously laid out sand. They eat on leaves, instead of plates. They even play monopoly with fabric. Literally, every move they make is a matter of life and death. Something as little as accidentally knocking over a lamp, will bring the creatures right to you. And they don’t hesitate for anyone.
One of the hardest things for directors today, is to figure out how to scare us. We’ve seen just about every scary movie imaginable with every kind of monster and every jump scare. If you’ve seen a lot of horror movies, there isn’t a whole lot that will scare you anymore. But A Quiet Place is unique. And I’m warning you now, it will scare the absolute sh*t out of you. It’s one of the scariest movies I’ve ever seen.
Credit: Paramount Pictures / "A Quiet Place"
The premise itself is terrifying. But what’s even more terrifying is the way John Krasinski masterfully executes the premise and directs the movie. A Quiet Place is a tension-filled, and horrifying, emotional rollercoaster from beginning to end. And Krasinski takes everything that makes a scary movie scary, and amplifies it by a thousand.
The scariest parts in horror movies are often the moments where a character is forced to keep quiet, fighting back the urge to scream, as a killer creeps right over their shoulder. These moments often create the most tension, and leave us gripping the edge of our seats and holding our breath. Now, imagine that nail-biting tension for an entire movie. To make everything worse, the killers in the movie can’t be outrun or outsmarted. If you so much as let out the slightest whimper, they’ll kill you before you finish screaming.
Credit: Paramount Pictures / "A Quiet Place"
Throwing us into a world where the characters are constantly on edge and have to live in silence to survive is such an incredible and smart way to create tension and craft something truly terrifying. It’s an insanely brilliant premise, especially for a horror movie. I’m surprised someone hasn’t thought of it sooner. But I’m glad someone did. And I’m glad that person was John Krasinski, because I don’t think anyone else could have pulled it off the way he does.
Credit: Paramount Pictures / "A Quiet Place"
A Quiet Place is terrifying, heartbreaking, and a true nerve-wracking experience. I haven’t been this scared in a long time. And I may never be this scared again.
Go out and see this movie on the biggest screen available with as many people as you can. It’s a ton of fun to experience the sheer terror of it with a packed audience. And it’s just a great movie overall.
Just like Get Out last year, I won’t be surprised if A Quiet Place is in talks during Oscar season. John Krasinski crafted a movie that’s so incredible and so terrifying, it’s impossible to keep quiet about.
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