Review of “A Quiet Place: Day One”: An unexpected love story

A quiet place: day one benefits from the two films that preceded it while still standing proudly on its own. This film isn’t here to give you answers about the aliens, as many people would have liked. Nor is it here to tell a sweeping story about the collapse of New York City, despite the trailer. Instead, it’s a story about who you choose to be in the face of the ending. And for Lupita Nyong’o, Sam isn’t just facing the end of the world because of an alien invasion. She’s also facing the end because of a fatal illness, making this story something heartbreaking but also compelling.

Sam, as a character, is angry. And rightfully so. Too often we don’t see women, especially women of color, in a situation where they can express their anger and not apologize for it. And that’s exactly what we see with Sam. She’s angry because she’s sick, because she doesn’t have the support of her father because he died too, and that she’s stuck in this hospice. When the aliens come, that’s the least of her problems. If anything, the aliens take away a lot of the problems of living in the present day and help her focus on what she wants to do at the end of her life.

Nyong’o, like the other actors in this series, does a lot with few words. Part of the A quiet place Franchise is being able to express emotions well because you can’t make noise. And not just with the face. We’re talking about body, sound and just the eyes. And even though I only had Sam for one film, Nyong’o gave me enough of that character that I was endlessly curious about who she was compared to all the other characters in that franchise. Because she was angry, the first thing that attracted me to her character, but she was also kind, understanding and patient. And she did all of that without losing herself or deviating a step from that journey she was on.

One of the people Sam was kind, understanding, and patient with was Eric, played by Joseph Quinn. After watching the movie, I did what every movie viewer does: I checked social media. And one of the things that kept striking me was what a “wimp” Eric was and how they wanted him to step up and “do something.” I disagree. I really liked that Eric was freaking out, but also trying to ground himself and make sure he wasn’t endangering Sam’s life. He came across as raw, human, and scared, like anyone else would be. I loved every moment he and Sam shared because it felt like they understood each other on a cosmic level and had strengths the other lacked, making them a perfect complement to each other. Don’t even get me started on how Quinn and Nyong’o looked at each other and shared a depth of emotion that I hadn’t felt in a movie in ages.

Therefore I think A quiet place: day one is a love story. Maybe it’s not romantic. But even then, it could be platonic love. A love based on two people at completely different stages of life, but committed to each other nonetheless. And you could see that in the way Sam helped Eric when his anxiety reared its ugly head, when Eric went to get medicine for Sam, and even in the way they spent those beautiful moments on stage, pretending they were at a magic show with an audience around them. They found peace with each other. They also chose each other. And I think that’s more powerful than anything. Choice. In the midst of all this monster chaos, choice led them to each other and kept them together. I would even say that this is a love story with themselves as characters, where they were able to give free rein to their feelings, their desires, and the people they wanted to be.

A quiet place: day one proves to be a rare sequel that works because it reminds us that human connection and choice are why we loved the first two films. John Krasinski’s character in the first film chose to sacrifice himself for his children. Emily Blunt’s character chose to go out into an unknown world to give herself and her children the best chance. Nyong’o’s Sam chose to open herself up to others, to the life she left behind, and to the city she loved. And Eric chose to stay and be there for someone else when he could have just left. This isn’t a story about aliens or how they got here. None of that matters in the long run. And if A quiet place: day one If I can remember this core message of the franchise, I’m excited to see what they do next, because other countries have been plagued by this mysterious alien and I’d love to see how they dealt with it too.

A quiet place: day one is now available in theaters.