Unnerving silence

Rating: 10/10 (3 May 2018)

'A Quiet Place' very quickly became one of my most anticipated films of the year. Have liked Emily Blunt a lot in other things, have a lot of appreciation for the genre and absolutely adored the concept. One of the year's best concepts and one of the most brilliant and unique for any film.
Seeing it, 'A Quiet Place' turned out to be one of my favourites of the year too, its positive critical reception more than deserved. Can understand though if it doesn't work for others, it is not a film that everybody will enjoy with its deliberate pace, very sparse use of music and dialogue and heavy reliance on atmosphere. Have seen many films recently that have wasted good potential and ideas or not quite fulfilling them. So it was refreshing and a blessing to have such a brilliant and unique concept executed in a way that was equally brilliant and as a film unlike any other seen by me.
Was far too transfixed by the atmosphere and mood to criticise 'A Quiet Place' for lack of logic, plot holes (have never criticised a film for plot holes, find it a lazy and unfair criticism especially when it's the only thing mentioned in reviews that list them and say nothing about the film's overall quality) or not making complete sense. When a film doesn't transfix or engage me it is less forgivable, but 'A Quiet Place' was utterly transfixing from start to finish from personal view.
It's a beautifully made film with a lot of style and atmosphere. Not everybody will like that the use of dialogue and music is sparse. That wasn't a problem for me, in fact it was appreciated and it worked really well. Actually think it was the right thing to do. Without constant music, the concept and atmosphere came through stronger, if the music was intrusive, obvious or repetitive they would not have worked anywhere near as well.
Without constant dialogue, it let the actors' expressions and body language do all the talking, have seen horror/sci-fi films, and films in general actually, recently that have suffered from too much talk and exposition that it bogs the pace down and it's even more of a problem when the dialogue isn't good or interesting. Appreciated hugely that 'A Quiet Place' didn't go down that route.
Luckily the acting benefits from having little dialogue, here it's a masterclass of expressions speaking louder than words. Emily Blunt is simply sensational in a very moving and expressive performance that is among her best. Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe also impress in beyond their years performances that one doesn't actually expect from actors so young. So does John Krasinki in a performance just as expressive, in a subtle way, and charismatic. In the director's chair, he shows a lot of confidence and great talent for mood and storytelling.
Especially good about 'A Quiet Place' is the atmosphere, which smoulders from every frame and shapes every part of the story. The pace is a deliberate slow-burn but for me it was never dull. Parts of 'A Quiet Place' are heartfelt, others are quirky. But above all it's genuinely scary and unnerving, enhanced by tremendous use of sound design that generates unbearable tension. The monsters are incredibly nightmarish, actually takes a lot for me to feel unsettled after watching a film since getting older, 'A Quiet Place' did that for me.
Overall, a superb film and one of my favourites of the year so far. 10/10 Bethany Cox