Hot take! I haven't seen the other A Quiet Place movies, despite how many people have recommended them to me, mostly because of the use of sound/silence. I spent most of my early twenties watching East-Asian horror, so I've known where to get good cinema when it comes to sound. However, with Day One being a prequel and starring the incredible Lupita Nyong'o, I knew this was going to be amazing, and it absolutely was.
Lupita Nyong'o and Joseph Quinn give incredible performances. In fact, there's not a single character in the film who doesn't deliver fear, care, or authenticity. It was great to see a small appearance from Djimon Hounsou, and the film opening with Alex Wolff who plays a nurse at the cancer home facility. The storytelling is beautiful; we follow a cancer patient, Sam (Nyong'o), and her search for the pizza she was promised, whilst attending a play in NYC. Okay, so I may have deterred from what the film is really about, however this plot was just wonderful as a side quest with the backdrop of the alien invasion and destruction of the city and all life within it. When I left the cinema all I could think about was Sam's cat and pizza. In fact, it was a crime that I didn't have pizza afterwards.
A Quiet Place: Day One was just what I needed on a rainy Friday evening in London. It's beautifully constructed, blending high octane scenes with incredibly soft moments of vulnerability. Sometimes, and quite often, a good movie is all I need to make life feel so much better and to restore a sense of calm amidst the chaos. This was perfect after powering through a long and hard week.
