Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Cast: Lupita Nyong’o, Joseph Quinn, Alex Wolff, Djimon Hounsou, Thea Butler, Alfie Todd, Elijah Ungvary, Zay Domo Artist, Thara Schöön, Eliane Umuhire, Alexander John, Takunda Khumalo, Choy-Ling Man, Ronnie Le Drew, Benjamin Wong, Avy Berry, Gavin Fleming, Michael Roberts.
When a horror/alien invasion film comes out of nowhere and blows everything apart, that rips up the laws set down on how a movie should engage with its plot as well as it potential viewers, the it is hardly surprising that not only does it gain a large cult following, it actively strides the genre with purpose, with the ability to add layers to the initial story with pride, with enormous satisfaction.
Such is the level of brilliance that came with John Krasinki’s A Quiet Place that a sequel was always inevitable. Yet, few would predict that the golden chalice of a prequel, that which kicks the film lover straight in to the anxiety driven beginnings of the core ethos of the message and the action, would have been one to give the flourishing franchise the groundwork to build an even greater world in which fully explore and feel the fear overwhelming each and every person hiding in their chair.
A Quiet Place: Day One thrills and consoles with a sturdy tenseness that gets to the heart of the matter of focusing almost completely on two central characters, on how our lives depend on making a connection with another soul in order to survive, and in the excellent Lupita Nyong’o and Joseph Quinn, the film becomes measured, realistic, physically rampant in the co-ordination between the dread of probable death and the small hope of life and how we must come to terms with the inevitable.
The themes of the film may leave some feeling empty, that why would a human being, when faced with the understanding that humanity is facing extinction would rather cling to a memory rather than saving themselves, but human behaviour is complex, it is individual, and for some in the face of death will cling to what they need at that moment rather than look to a future in which might hold little value.
The pairing of Ms. Nyong’o and Mr. Quinn is beautiful, it fills a void in which relationships are formed under pressure, and the touching scenes inside the public house as silent magic is performed is intelligent cinema portrayed superbly well.
A Quiet Place: Day One is horror/alien cinema captured with an intensity and a compassion for society imploding on itself as they struggle to come to terms with the perfect storm desecrating humanity. There should be no doubt that the franchise has muscle, it has depth, and will have loyal fans clamouring for another episode of this terrifying, nightmare vision to come to the large screen soon. Ian D. Hall