Horror seems to be in a really good place in the moment, with Stephen King’s IT releasing last year, a revival of the best horror film ever coming later this year, and a plethora of little indie scares coming your way over the coming months.
We’ve had The Babadook, The VVitch, and more recently, Veronica but it seems like we might be getting another installation which is going to quietly blow all them away.
I say quietly because this film, A Quiet Place, is based entirely around being as silent as possible in a world populated with monsters who will kill you if they hear you.
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The monsters seem to leave you alone if you’re completely silent, but if you make even the tiniest bit of noise then they will come and rip you to shreds.
Directed by John Krasinski, also known as Jim from the US Office, the film stars John and his wife Emily Blunt in the two leading roles.
They play the parents of a family who live in this world as quietly as possible so they aren’t hunted by the mysterious creatures.
The film has just opened at SXSW festival and reviews are incredible, and it also boasts an impressive 100 per cent on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.
The trailers have been received very well, so it’s a relief to know the film lives up to expectations.
Meredith Borders for Slash Film wrote that the film is ‘majorly effective’ at delivering those monster scares.
Holy shit, A QUIET PLACE is for real. John Krasinski made a horror movie that’s wholly original and, btw, really, REALLY scary. #sxsw
— Meredith Borders (@xymarla) March 10, 2018
She writes:
Because A Quiet Place is, above all else, really scary. Krasinki plays with tension in relentless waves, these cycles of fear and release, fear and release.
So many of these recent contained horror films are all build-up and no pay-off, and A Quiet Place pays off again and again, with remarkable set pieces and long, unflinching looks at these arachnid beasts, their leathery, complicated physiques, endless caverns of teeth and giant, ghastly ears.
#AQuietPlace is a masterclass in suspense. It weaponizes your own screams against you. The tension is so taut your stomach will turn in relentless knots. Totally deliciously terrifying. #SXSW18
— Kristy Puchko ➡️ SXSW (@KristyPuchko) March 10, 2018
Film critic Kristy Puchko wrote a thread on Twitter explaining how much she loved the film, writing:
A Quiet Place is a masterclass in suspense. It weaponises your own screams against you. The tension is so taut your stomach will turn in relentless knots. Totally deliciously terrifying.
I feel ill. That rocked me so hard my stomach literally hurts. Also sorry to everyone around me who was witness to my shrieks and yelps!
The terrifying creatures in this feature were made by ILM. Of Course.
A QUIET PLACE: who would’ve thought John Krasinski had an all-timer horror picture in him? One of best mainstream creature features in years with a wild pure cinema experimental streak. What a brilliant bit of a genre cinema that’s equal parts Spielberg and Romero. #SXSW2018
— Jacob Knight (@JacobQKnight) March 10, 2018
Here’s the thing… Audible horror is my kryptonite. A QUIET PLACE is the MOST audible horror movie I’ve ever seen. Emotionally, I’m spent. Intellectually, I recognize that this movie fucking rules. Krasinski, Blunt, the kids, all top notch. #SXSW pic.twitter.com/o3ymd7r63V
— Neil Miller™ (@rejects) March 10, 2018
#AQuietPlace: Wow. Opening night at #SXSW brought it *hard.* Thrilling, tremendous sound design and genuinely frightening. What could have been a “gimmick” flick strikes fear and tugs the heartstrings. Survival horror with the right influences.
— Howlin' Matt Donato (@DoNatoBomb) March 10, 2018
The number of incredible reviews for this film are actually hard to count, but it’s getting us all really excited for the film’s release in the UK on May 4.
Jacob Knight wrote on Twitter:
Who would’ve thought John Krasinski had an all-timer horror picture in him? One of the best mainstream creature features in years with a wild pure cinema experimental streak.
What a brilliant bit of a genre cinema that’s equal parts Spielberg and Romero.
#AQuietPlace is INCREDIBLY effective; my hands hurt from clenching my fists this whole time. So tense people were actually screaming. #SXSW2018
— Angie Han @ SXSW (@ajhan) March 10, 2018
The film world is really shouting from the rooftops about this film, which is strangely ironic, but equally as exciting.