After a weekend with some original (though nostalgic) content at the multiplex, we’re back with a new installment of a very popular SF-thriller franchise that’s now six years old. It’s the third follow-up, though not a continuation of the last one from 2020. That’s because this is not a sequel, but rather a prequel, giving us the “backstory” to the event of the original. And since there are no characters from that flick, this could be considered a “spin-off”. Not to worry as this is no confusing “hybrid” unlike a similar action blockbuster (which didn’t “bust many blocks” at the box office) from a few weeks ago, FURIOSA: A MAD MAX SAGA. While that one certainly tested many theatre sound systems, the decibel level should be much lower when in use for A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE. Shhhh…
The setting for this cinematic “flashback” shifts to the Big Apple, although the opening scenes take place a few miles away, in the NYC suburbs at a hospice facility. A senior nurse, Rueben (Alex Wolff) conducts a group therapy session for several of the terminal residents. But one of them is not “into it”. That’s Sam (Lupita Nyong’o) who has no filter (“This place is s*#t”) and would rather just wait for the end with her beloved cat Frodo. Rueben thinks he can get her out of her “funk”. He’s organized a field trip into Manhattan for a (short) theatrical presentation. Sam strikes a deal that she’ll come along if, and only if, they grab some pizza in the city. On the bus ride there she observes several fighter jets zooming overhead. Finally, they arrive for a (oh no) puppet show. When Sam and Frodo duck out to grab a snack at a nearby bodega, sirens are heard. They run into Rueben as he tries to hustle everyone back on the bus as per the loud warning messages from several rapid military vehicles (no pizza). The trip is cut short as objects from the sky (maybe bombs or meteors) explode onto the street. Sam’s knocked down during the chaos and awakens back inside the theatre. The city is under attack, overrun by huge spider-like sightless creatures that destroy anyone that makes a sound. Helicopters using loudspeakers (agitating the monsters) blare out a message that all survivors should make their way, silently, to the south dock area where boats will ferry them to safety since the aliens can’t swim. As the throngs march quietly through the streets, Sam goes against “the tide” to Harlem for her favorite pizza. On her journey, she and Frodo become part of a trio when a lost British law student named Eric (Joseph Quinn) joins them, much to Sam’s chagrin. Does she have the strength to evade the invaders? And can she and Erik make it to the boats in time?
The script brings a great challenge to the cast as they must communicate and express their emotions mainly through their eyes and body language, harkening back to the early days of silent cinema. And the compelling Ms. Nyong’o is more than up to the challenge, though she’s also terrific in the opening, pre-attack sequences as she verbally tosses snarky spears at nearly everyone around her (and then there are the eye-rolls as she discovers the type of show she’s agreed to see). Yes, she conveys the wide-eyed fear and panic, while never letting us forget that Sam is also pushing through agonizing pain as cancer ravages her body. Later, there’s her frustration as this “dufus in a suit” just won’t be on his way, which finally melts into admiration and real, and probably final, human connection. As her unlikely sidekick. Quinn also must temper the terror with his need to forge that connection and dissolve Sam’s “steel wall” of negativity. Plus he proves to be an unorthodox action hero as he ventures into the scary empty city in search of the meds that will ease Sam’s suffering (and discovers the monsters’ secret lair). Wolff is very good as the “by the book” official who secretly is amused by the defiant Sam. Kudos also to the impressive supporting work of Djimon Hounsou as the powerful father figure who’s the big “carryover” character in another part of the series. The scene where he must do the unthinkable to protect his son (while hoping that he’s not seeing it) is heartwrenching.
Aside from the new central characters in this entry, a big “player” behind the scenes has stepped away from the director’s chair. John Krasinski was busy with a more pleasant vision of the Big Apple full of friendly beasties in IF, so he’s handed over the helming reigns to Michael Sarnoski (PIG), though they teamed up on the script. Sarnoski captures that feeling of doom and dread, especially as we get several hints early on (jets in formation) that all Hell was soon “break loose”. When it does the city blocks are covered in white ash, almost as though a sudden blizzard has stopped everything (and reminding us of that fateful September morning in 2001). And while there are grand, epic “set pieces” of the aliens scurrying up buildings, Sarnoski really focuses on the folks at ground level. This is best highlighted in a mass exodus street scene in which the smallest noises alert the beasts who zip through the crowds, picking off the marchers with swift efficiency. It’s nightmare imagery, building on the hopelessness hinted at as the bridges to the city are taken out hinting that the feds think that our greatest metropolis is a “loss”. Yet amidst the carnage we’re really drawn into the dynamic of Sam and Erik as she finally finds something to live for just as everything seems to be over for humanity (and her rejoining it). Sure, it’s an “end of the globe” spectacle (with splendid CGI effects of the insect-like “rippers”) much like the variations of I AM LEGEND, but it’s the blossoming friendship that offers a glimmer of joy and hope in the truly original origin story at the center of A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE.
3 Out of 4
A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE is now playing in theatres everywhere
