The Film Buffa Reviews: ‘A Quiet Place: Day One’ is a masterclass in bottleneck suspense

Minus movie stars and flush with scary monster jolts, Michael Sarnoski’s origin sequel rips. See in a big theater with friends.

At the onset of A Quiet Place: Day One, the audience is told that a normal sounding day in New York can reach 93 decibels, the equivalent of a constant scream. That’s an elite form of noise from ordinary day movements from humans, things, and everything in between. So, what could possibly shut the Big Apple up? Scary alien creatures with ultrasonic hearing definitely can. Two films into a well made and profitable franchise, boosting a new cast and setup, John Krasinski’s original science fiction juggernaut hums along nicely-even without his presence.

The third edition is the first without its original stars Emily Blunt and Krasinski, moving the action to the loudest city in the country right at the outbreak of madness. Just like the previous films, Michael Sarnoski’s Day One doesn’t waste much time setting the stage. Our heroine is Samira (Lupita Nyong’o), who spends her days living in a hospice home with constant pain--but she has good friends like Reuben (Alex Wolff) and her trustworthy cat, Frodo. The only thing that would make her feel better are nifty pharmaceutical fentanyl stickers that wrap around your ribs, and a real good pizza.

Fed up with impersonation pies around her home outside the city, she sets off for the heart of NYC to find a good pizza while on a field trip with her hospice home group-and then alien creatures come crashing down into Earth. In a meteor shower of pods smashing into anything moving or not, they arrive with a vengeance.

In a classic situation of the audience knowing more than the characters they’re watching, we get to see a lot of unfortunate souls scream in horror and get viciously scooped off their feet by their new planet invaders. The special effects and CGI makeup of the creatures is A+ work. It’s never a distraction or too fake of a look when they’re on screen. A sequence after their arrival shows a pack of them feverishly racing across buildings and rooftops is surreal and thrilling at once.

While the human actors are well drawn enough to build interest and make us care about them, it’s the alien antagonists that command the screen and garner our attention. You’re either bouncing off your seat in temporary fright (there are a few genuine jump scares) as they attack, or waiting for them to return. While the first two placed the emphasis of the story on the humans, A Quiet Place: Day One rightfully sets the center of the stage on the actual monsters.

There’s no useless or lame subplot about their exact origin, nor is there an I Am Legend empathy twist near the end. They show up to a loud place, and proceed to wreak havoc. Think of them like Godzilla split into springy, thin monsters that can gallop faster than a mountain lion. No initiative or agenda; seek and destroy.

Sarnoski, who wrote and directed the masterful Nic Cage film, Pig (which also co-starred Wolff), provides the franchise with an authentic eye behind the camera, heightening the emotions at the same level as the thrills. There was a ruggedness to Pig that never felt forced or like anything near a caricature, and Sarnoski transfers that captivating feel to a larger scale.

A Quiet Place: Day One is a legit movie theater experience. While I love an old fashioned movie house, only a third of releases these days are actually movie theater worthy. What used to be an event film now multiplies into three or four releases. But Sarnoski’s riveting thriller would slay back in 1997 or here in 2024. You need to see this one in a big theater, and get scared out of your mind.

When the director of an indie darling is handed a big check to expand his or her filmmaking style onto a larger canvas, things can go wrong. Look at Chloe Zhao entering the Marvel Universe after the indelible Nomadland triumph. But Sarnoski makes the leap; he makes the franchise his own thing, but also keeps his eye on the ball. The last part being don’t forget what made the whole thing lively in the first place.

Acting wise, Nyong’o creates a compelling presence in Samira. We’re never exactly sure what disease or illness is fighting her, but the actress cuts straight through to the defiance in her heart for all things fake and useless in life. I wish she worked more, but am glad at the same time that she’s picky. Joseph Quinn, who shot to the top of everybody’s heart as the rocker on Stranger Things, has a nice supporting part as a soul that Samira encounters after the initial attack. He finds a heroic vulnerability in Eric, someone who recognizes a human worth traveling with. A little Djmou Housou goes a long way.

Their trek across enemy territory, which happens to be any territory, makes for a stressful (in a good way) experience. We never know who could get snatched or killed next, and where the next alien creature is looming. The humans start to adapt how they put out sound, using loud water or even the crack of thunder to throw off the enemy. Neither of its 95 minutes are wasted, leaving me wanting more time in this modern day badlands.

Three movies in, A Quiet Place still manages to make a pretty loud dent with filmgoers. That’s not easy to do, even in the modern era of sequels galore. It’s exactly what the previews say it is, and there is no extra fluff. Go with someone you like or love, or whoever has a hand that can withstand your super-tight grip for a little over 90 minutes.

Thanks for reading and go have some fun at the movies. If they stop being fun, we have a problem.