Been a very very long time since I posted anything here. I am still watching films, and still spending far too much time wondering about what they mean and what I think about them. Trouble is that my job these days doesn't give me any chance to write reviews in my down-time. I admit it - must be that 50% or so of reviews here were penned in downtime at my previous jobs. New job is much more busy. Much more interesting, but much more busy. So fewer reviews.
A Quiet Place is - until almost the very last shot - a solid science fiction tale. It is the near future and something (aliens, creatures from the beyond, something) has invaded the earth and brought humanity to the brink of devastation. The something experiences the world be sound and vibration only. So the survivors of the human race live a near-silent existence, wearing soft footwear, tip-toeing around padded environments in fear of making a sound that could be their last.
Emily Blunt and John Krasinski play the adults in a nuclear family that in the pre-credits escape attack at a terrible cost - their youngest son is killed by the alien invaders after he accidentally sets off a loud, toy rocket ship. A year passes and they have set themselves up a silent subsistence existence on the remnants of a rural farm. There is constant fear that any sound could bring back the destruction that killed their son, but at the same time life must go on. The children are growing up, another baby is on the way. How to carry on in these circumstance?
Bubbling underneath this though, the real story is about everyone actually blaming themselves for everything that has gone wrong. If only I hadn't given my son that toy... If only I hadn't left him by himself... If only... Everyone has regrets and 'what if's, and everyone hides them. Here sound is kept to a minimum, communication is scant, there is ample space for family members to hide away themselves, their feelings and thoughts. Science fiction isn't it? It's a story about secrets and hidden fears set in a world that physically embodies those fears of speaking out of turn.
Until the final shot. I'm not going to spoiler anything, even though it isn't exactly The Usual Suspects. Suffice to say that the film ends on a siege in which the attackers do finally come to the rural idyll and the family finally must confront the issues - both internal and external. Sacrifices are made, and new heroes arise. For some reason though, this film of minimal crisp soundscape and thoughtful themes ends on one character cocking a shotgun as the soundtrack ramps up to 11-out-of-10 generic rock It's utterly non-reflective of the film and a very odd way to smash-cut to black. Perhaps the idea was to underscore that the family are no longer fearful of their own noise that held them prisoner for so long? Perhaps. But shifting the tone of a film towards Bayhem right at the final scene is a bold move. I'm not sure it works in a film that's a straightforward but heartfelt exploration of human love and communication. Nope - not for me.
Way to ruin your film.
