A Quiet Place

"A family who have to try their best to survive in an apocalyptic world by being quiet. If they make any noise at all, something is going to know their position and hunt them."

Title: A QUIET PLACE

Year: 2018 Directed By: John Krasinski Written By: John Krasinski, Scott Beck, Bryan Woods Duration: 90 Minutes Genre: Thiller, Horror Starring: John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe Language: English, American Sign Language Score: 7/10

So here it is, probably one of the most talked-about horror film of the month (according to my subjective observation). It stars real-life husband and wife, John Krasinski and Emily Blunt. It's also directed and written by John Krasinski. The trailer of this movie has been played numerous times in the cinema in Jakarta, where I live. And I've always been terrified and swore I will not watch it. Until my dad wanted to go watch something in the cinema and this is the only one we haven't watched, so I watched it. And here's what I think about it.

WHAT'S GOOD ABOUT IT?

1. THE SUSPENSE

Well, yeah, it's a thriller movie, of course you have to have suspense. And this movie provides it very well. Tons of jumpscares ready to make your heart beats a lot faster. The silence and the moments of the jumpscares are just perfect to keep you on the edge of your seat. Right from the start, you're already given a glimpse of how the jumpscares work in this movie. For those thriller movie lovers who enjoy jumpscares, I recommend this movie highly for you.

2. EMILY BLUNT'S ACTING

There's no doubt how good she acts. She has potrayed different kinds of people throughout her career, and this is just another good one. Because she's the star of the movie, her expression, especially the painful ones, are crucial. And she nailed it. There was a scene (you can watch it in their promo clip) where she was screaming in so much pain while being alone in the bathtub, and this scene really makes you feel like you're also having the same pain and feel sorry for her. Her expressions are one of the essential elements to make you feel like you're with them, experiencing the same thing.

3. AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE

It's a really good decision to cast an actual deaf actress to play Emily and John's deaf daughter in the movie. All the actors also use quite a lot of American Sign Language (ASL) which is a great movement so people realize deaf people doesn't mean they're limited. The deaf actress herself said she was proud to be a role model that deaf people can look up to.

4. HOW IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT BEING A SCARY MOVIE

It's also about family. Even though this movie has monsters and jumpscares along with full-of-suspense music, the message is actually about what someone is willing to do to protect his/her family, the people she/he loves. If you can digest the movie completely, apart from just the scare it provides, you would understand and agree with this movie about how far you'd go to save the ones you love.

5. THEY FIND WAYS TO TALK

And not make it an entirely mute movie. Which is good, cause after just listening to super small noises for a while, some human voices could help. And they did it in the most logic ways.

WHAT'S NOT GOOD ABOUT IT?

1. SO WHERE DID THE MONSTERS COME FROM?

John Krasinski has said in his interviews that the point of this movie is about family, maybe that's why he didn't give that much of a back story about the monsters. But as an audience, I'd love to see a lot more about the monsters. Why did they came? How did they came? Except about them being blind and only use their hearing to catch their prey, we know nothing else. After all, I'm also curious what happened in the first place that made earth full of monsters (or maybe it wasn't the whole earth? Maybe it's just that area? Well, we'll never know)

2. ONLY A FEW LOCATIONS

It is an apocalyptic movie and I understand that means there's not a lot of place left to go to. But spending almost three-quarter of a 90 minutes movie around the house is not that interesting either. Like I said, there's a lot of jumpscares so you don't have to worry that fewer locations will reduce the suspense. But it does make it less interesting for me. It'd be better if in the end they show a lot more 'secret' locations in or around the house that they haven't shown.

WHAT'S SO-SO ABOUT IT?

1. THE ENDING

I wouldn't say it's a terrible ending but it wasn't the best ending either. I feel like a little more explanation would make things clearer, since they've been spending almost the whole movie being quiet. After seeing their terrifying journey for 90 minutes, I think they deserve a more interesting ending.


So, there you have it, my opinion about A Quiet Place. Enjoy :)