A Quiet Place (Paramount)

Rated PG-13 for terror and some bloody images.

Starring Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, Cade Woodward, Leon Russom.

Written by Bryan Woods, Scott Beck and John Krasinski.

Directed by John Krasinski.

GRADE: A-

REVIEW:

I’ve never been much of a fan for horror movies. Scary movies? That’s a different story. I make a distinction between films that rely on gore and occult variables and movies that create suspense without innards and satanic characters jumping out at you. A Quiet Place, directed by John Krasinsky (he and his wife Emily Blunt also star in the film) is certainly one of the scariest movies I’ve seen recently. The good news is, it isn’t a horror flick.

Kraskinski and Blunt play the Lee and Evelyn Abbott, a couple who’s been able to survive a planetary infestation of killer alien monsters; large creatures that are shielded by a nearly impenetrable shell-like armor and are blind. The aliens have very sensitive hearing that allows them to track their prey by slightest sounds. The Abbotts have figured out ways to cope while raising their kids Regan (Utah’s own Millicent Simmonds), a deaf teenage girl, Marcus (Noah Jupe), her preteen brother and Beau (Cade Woodward), a curious kindergarten-aged boy. When tragedy takes one of the kids, the Abbotts move on and stay quiet on their rural farm. Dealing with their loss more than a year later, Evelyn is pregnant. As the family prepares for what could be a noisy birth, the monsters are always nearby. When Evelyn goes into labor a few weeks earlier than expected, the family is separated by circumstance and she is forced to deliver the baby as quietly as possible, leading to hasty monster attack and heroic rescue effort. Reuniting the family proves more difficult than expected, even as a possible alien weakness is discovered by Regan.

A Quiet Place is indeed frightening, and even though Kraskinski utilizes some of the more cliché’ plot devices (jump scares, music stings, blind reveals), such methods are wrapped around a genuine family dynamic and understated script. Krasinski chose a very good premise and setting for his first major film as director (he helmed a few independent films prior), not to mention a perfect cast, including his talented wife and two gifted child actors. Simmonds’ performance is perhaps the most noteworthy, as you never think of her as “the hearing-impaired one.” She carries the heart and soul of a great family film that also happens to be very scary.

Please note that A Quiet Place is rated PG-13. It does contain violence and a who lot of terror, but the scary stuff never ventures into gore, nasty language or anything gratuitous. I would be very selective about taking young teens to see it but use your own judgement. It certainly falls into the perfect date night movie, offering plenty of thrills and tension.

So, go ahead and see A Quiet Place with someone you love, and tell the whole world about it…just do so very quietly.