Nominated For: Best Sound Editing.
A Quiet Place follows a family who lives in silence because creatures drawn by sound threaten their survival. To say anything else regarding the plot would risk spoilers, and I'd rather not ruin the experience for anyone.
John Krasinski, whom you may be most familiar with as Jim from The Office, directed and co-wrote A Quiet Place in addition to starring in the film alongside real life spouse Emily Blunt. A Quiet Place marks Krasinski's third feature length directorial effort, but it also represents his first foray into the horror/thriller genre. Considering his comedic background and the natural difficulties of crafting unique and effective scares, the odds were certainly stacked against Krasinski. However, I'm starting to think comedians may be best-suited to directing these types of films after considering Jordan Peele's remarkable directorial debut last year and Krasinski's outstanding work here.
A Quiet Place is a film which relishes in its intriguing post-apocalyptic environment. If the monsters hear you, you're toast. Say "Hi." Dead. Drop something? Better start running as stealthily as you possibly can before the creatures catch you. Make any noise and you'll be dead in a matter of seconds. In this world, silence is survival. Therefore, this family has been forced to fundamentally adapt their entire way of life in order to persevere. They communicate almost entirely through sign language, carry around bags of sand to cover pathways, and walk around barefoot to make minimal noise. While this concept is undeniably quite creative, it's ultimately the execution that matters most, not the idea itself. Under lesser hands, A Quiet Place could have simply been standard horror-fare. Fortunately, Krasinski's in charge though, as he and his crew prove up to the task of delivering a spectacularly suspenseful, sound-driven thriller.
As I've already insinuated, A Quiet Place is a film that lives or dies based on a few very important things. Obviously, sound is integral to everything. Therefore, A Quiet Place relies almost entirely on sound to craft a suspenseful atmosphere, and it is with great pleasure that I say the sound design is seriously SUPERB and Marco Beltrami's score is incredibly effective in immersing the audiences into a terrifying turn of events. The sound editing and sound mixing stand out as some of the most noteworthy work I've seen in a film since Baby Driver (not including sci-fi or war films). There's an unbelievable attention of detail to noises normally slight, subtle, and lost to the loud hub-bub of busy environments. You'll be able to hear the faintest footstep, the rustling of leaves, and even the actors' breathing if your audience cooperates. The film will be best experienced in the quietest possible theater, so I'd actually recommend purposely going to an early or late showing to see it with a smaller crowd if your schedule permits.
Otherwise, A Quiet Place is an exceptional directorial display from Krasinski all around. The film's perfectly paced at a reasonable runtime of ninety minutes and it's worth noting that Charlotte Bruus Christensen often framed the camera so that it appears as though the characters are being watched by some sort of predator. Of course, it also helps that Krasinski, Bryan Woods, and Scott Beck were able to write a well-throughout screenplay with logic, stakes, and an emotional element. Oftentimes, characters in a horror film suffer from an overbearing and obnoxious incompetence. Well, that's not the case in A Quiet Place. The Abbott family have prepared a contingency for everything. It's the unforeseen and unavoidable accidents which ratchet up the tension. I found the film to be gripping from beginning-to-end as I sat on the edge of my seat anxious about the inevitability of these characters generating noise.
When it happens, every moment onward becomes an absolute nail-biter as you immediately understand the importance of preserving silence. On that note, the creatures are creepy, but I didn't include images of them to preserve the element of surprise. You'll see them earlier than you probably expect to, but once you do, you'll nervously bide your time hoping you don't have to see them again because their appearance spells certain doom for those around.
The lynch pin of it all though is undoubtedly the impressive acting on display. Without a convincing look of fear in an actor's face, everything falls apart. And on that note, the actors are handicapped without the ability to speak due to the obvious story implications. There are some inventive workarounds for this, but they're few and far between, so the actors are ultimately tasked with communicating a family dynamic through mere facial expressions and sign language. John Krasinski and Emily Blunt effectively measure up to the challenge set before them, playing parents and spouses Lee and Evelyn. As one might suspect, their real life marriage authenticates their chemistry and enhances the intimacy between their characters so you feel the connection between them even without dialogue to reaffirm it. Both actors also offer extraordinary performances independently of one another and shine in specific sequences I wouldn't dare spoil.
As for the young performers, I was enamored with the performances from both Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe. Simmonds and Jupe portray siblings Regan and Marco respectively, and both child actors communicated remarkably well without words. I found out afterwards that Simmonds is actually deaf, which only lent further credence to her character's condition. One may shrug off her performance because of this, but I'd say that's an example of shortsightedness because Simmonds showcases true talent through her various heightened emotional states.
To say I was speechless after watching A Quiet Place would be an understatement, as I had no idea how to best articulate its brilliance to my readership. Those interested in seeing the next great horror film better listen up because A Quiet Place is absolutely unrelenting. It will probably be awhile before people stop talking about it.
No comments:
Post a Comment