‘A Quiet Place’ brings depth to horror genre

New movie sheds light on the complexity of family relations

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Fair use from “A Quiet Place” official website.

Amaia Barajas

Walking into the theater last Friday night, I had low expectations for the movie “A Quiet Place.” This was not because I thought it would be a waste of my time or another dumb horror movie, but frankly, it’s because I hate horror movies. I don’t like to pay to be scared, but I was pleasantly surprised with how good and compelling this movie really is. “A Quiet Place” is both thrilling, scary and heart-warming, all in one 90-minute movie.

The film  revolves around a married couple, Evelyn Abbott (Emily Blunt) and Lee Abbott (John Krasinski), and their kids. It takes place in a world where creatures sensitive to sound have invaded the earth and the only way for people to survive is to stay completely silent. The couple  has two kids with another one on the way, which is the main premise of the story, as the movie revolves around them preparing and dealing with bringing a baby in the world. The family is able to survive by walking everywhere barefoot and soundproofing every single path by covering it with sand. The mere act of dropping something on the floor can immediately cause the creatures to arrive and kill a family member if they’re not prepared.

“A Quiet Place” is one of those movies that has viewers on the edge of their seat and anxiously waiting for the next big moment.  There were times during the movie where I forgot I was watching a horror movie at all, whether it was because there were heart-to-hearts between a son and father,brother and sister, or because of the beautiful scenery. The family lives on a vast, isolated farm where they grow their own food. The way that farm was shot was so beautiful I often found myself  distracted from the horrors the family was living through. What I thought was so nice about this movie was that at its core it is a film about family and survival, which added some humanity to a pretty absurd plot . It focused on how the family needs to work together to survive — mentally and physically.

The only thing  that annoyed me about the movie was how it  didn’t focus on the backstory. I wish the movie would’ve shown flashback scenes of how the family used to live and how the creatures got to earth in the first place. I feel as though it would’ve added more depth to the movie and the audience would’ve been able to better understand it.

All in all, “A Quiet Place” is  a great movie about family survival and how humans can withstand even the most dangerous circumstances. This is  the best horror/thriller movie I’ve ever seen and, to be honest, the ending did make me cry. I recommend everyone go see it, even if horror movies aren’t your cup of tea.

 

Rating: 3.5/5