Nerds That Geek Movie Review: 'A Quiet Place'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

It seems that as of late, there’s been quite the buzz revolving around a particular problem plaguing the motion picture industry, in that…there are simply no original ideas left to be told on the silver screen. And there is in fact, some credence when it comes to this particular discussion. After all, it’s sequel after sequel in theaters, or a remake, or a superhero flick and one must wonder if there is any room anymore in the marketplace for films that offer something other than safe bets for the studios. 
 
The answer is, yes there is, but you have to keep your eyes peeled for that special gem of a movie because it may not be in theaters for long when blockbusters are there to push them aside and while it seems as though a lot of the finer motion pictures these days are moving to the independent circuit or streaming services, once in a while something fresh and original does come along in theaters, and it offers something so refreshing that it has no problem hanging with the superheroes, and recently, I finally had the opportunity to watch a movie that brings something new to the table in A Quiet Place.
 
In this tale, aliens from another planet have found their way to our world and have made our cities their hunting grounds and the people that reside within them, their food supply, and thanks to their well armored bodies, and enhanced hearing capabilities, they are able to lay waste to civilization in no time at all. But life does find a way to continue on and far away from the cities, a family has found a way to embrace silence in order to survive. But as the years drag on, their silent lifestyle and the losses they’ve suffered begin to take their toll and somehow, this family must find a way to properly communicate and connect with one another in a world where they cannot make a sound, before all is lost…

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​So, let’s just get this out in the open right now, this movie is completely and utterly brilliant, for so many reasons. First and foremost, it really is something fresh and original in every sense of those words because I’ve never seen a horror/sci-fi film like this. Often times, movies in this vein are all about exposition and explanation when it comes to the creatures that terrorize the countryside, but in this story, that’s simply not the case. Instead, everything we learn happens in silence, by way of old headlines and the images that play out before our eyes and I love the fact that there were no flashbacks or any kind of sneaky surprises storytelling wise. We are merely plunged into this world, alongside a family that just wants to see tomorrow and that makes for a raw and visceral experience.
 
Yet, what surprised me most about this film wasn’t its incredible concept or straightforward style of storytelling. It’s the fact that it also managed to put a new spin on how horror films examine the human condition. Because normally, movies in this genre, look at the problems in our world and put them on display in order to give us pause and allow us to reflect. But rather than examine the worst parts of us or the state of our world, this film instead chooses to focus on the wonder of family, and what it means to connect with other people through conversation and that oddly enough, gives this motion picture a beauty that I wasn’t expecting to find and a sense of hope you rarely see in apocalypse related material. 
 
Yet, while all of this makes the film remarkable in its own right, the story takes it one step further by also avoiding a lot of the familiar twists and turns you find in stories like this, making some of the more critical moments feel far more genuine and unscripted and well, all of these elements make this motion picture an utter delight to watch and one that quite frankly, I highly recommend. Because this movie really is something special, and I hope this film signals a paradigm shift in the industry, because it just goes to show that there are still some wonderful fresh ideas out there, just waiting to be told, and the silver screen needs more of them. 

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