A Quiet Place

A lot has been written about how wonderfully this film works and the prime reasons behind it. John Krasinski's clever plot (co-written by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods) makes great use of sound as a device to stage some real horror. Yet it never loses sight of some poignant emotion tied in with the family central to it. One movie that comes to mind, with regards to such fine balance of clever thrills and emotion, is Hitchcock's "Rear Window". Sure there's jump scares and cheap thrills aplenty, but the movie makes it a point to rise above them. Emily Blunt and John Krasinski are at their usual effective selves but surprise comes in the form of the terrific Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe. And did I mention the movie's use of sound and what a riot it would have been designing that for the film, with a fabulous soundtrack by Marco Beltrami?
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Source: Paramount

But what deserves dwelling upon, is the way the film works like a Rube Goldberg machine, a wonderful contraption where every move is designed for ulterior purposes. This works not only with the plot points, but also with the environment within the film, aided by Jeffrey Beecroft's brilliant production design. One instance that comes to mind is how there's a non-functional pick up truck parked upon an incline, that when set free travels a very specific distance, to a very specific place. Moments like these are aplenty in the film, all a consequence of smart writing, that Krasinski very deftly directs. For these reasons, "A Quiet Place" deserves a place in the canon of respected cerebral films, as much as it deserves a place in other applicable genre listings.