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Set about a year before the events of A Quiet Place, Day One follows Samira (Lupita Nyong'o), a terminally ill woman trying to survive the first days of the alien invasion in New York City. She is joined in her survival journey by Eric (Joseph Quinn), an English young man that came to study law ("It's the one thing I was supposed to do"), but who will end up doing much more.
The film opens with Samira in hospice, reading the above "poem" during a group therapy; a showing of her pessimistic and bleak outlook on life. But as is usually the case, that shell is there to hide a person that has been, in many ways, beaten down. Aside from her illness, as the film progresses we find out that she lost her father in the same way. Plus, the fact that she's in a hospice tells us that she really has no one else in her life.
As the invasion starts and the aliens are unleashed, Sam is determined to get to Patsy's pizzeria to get one last slice of their pizza. Something that we find out later has a deeper meaning to her than just good pizza. It is quite rare and remarkable to get not only a horror film, but a horror prequel, that rely so much on emotional character development instead of plot, and yet here we are.
But a good story can only take you so far. The rest of the distance is carried by Nyong'o and Quinn, who are both great. Nyong'o has got to be one of the most expressive actresses I've seen recently. The way she uses her eyes is quite something. Plus, the way she and Quinn develop this chemistry to make this unlikely friendship work, in between alien attacks, is probably the strongest asset from the film.
I've really enjoyed all of the films from this franchise so far, and overall, I think I held them all at the same level. But I won't deny that the emotional arc from Sam might push this one just a smidge to the top for me. From seeing a place that smells like s-hit to how she's able to walk into a new day, and feel fine with what it brings, is remarkable.
Grade:
A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE
(2024, Sarnoski)
(2024, Sarnoski)
"This place is s-hit. This place smells like s-hit. Betsy's voice sounds like s-hit. Cancer is s-hit."
Set about a year before the events of A Quiet Place, Day One follows Samira (Lupita Nyong'o), a terminally ill woman trying to survive the first days of the alien invasion in New York City. She is joined in her survival journey by Eric (Joseph Quinn), an English young man that came to study law ("It's the one thing I was supposed to do"), but who will end up doing much more.
The film opens with Samira in hospice, reading the above "poem" during a group therapy; a showing of her pessimistic and bleak outlook on life. But as is usually the case, that shell is there to hide a person that has been, in many ways, beaten down. Aside from her illness, as the film progresses we find out that she lost her father in the same way. Plus, the fact that she's in a hospice tells us that she really has no one else in her life.
As the invasion starts and the aliens are unleashed, Sam is determined to get to Patsy's pizzeria to get one last slice of their pizza. Something that we find out later has a deeper meaning to her than just good pizza. It is quite rare and remarkable to get not only a horror film, but a horror prequel, that rely so much on emotional character development instead of plot, and yet here we are.
But a good story can only take you so far. The rest of the distance is carried by Nyong'o and Quinn, who are both great. Nyong'o has got to be one of the most expressive actresses I've seen recently. The way she uses her eyes is quite something. Plus, the way she and Quinn develop this chemistry to make this unlikely friendship work, in between alien attacks, is probably the strongest asset from the film.
I've really enjoyed all of the films from this franchise so far, and overall, I think I held them all at the same level. But I won't deny that the emotional arc from Sam might push this one just a smidge to the top for me. From seeing a place that smells like s-hit to how she's able to walk into a new day, and feel fine with what it brings, is remarkable.
Grade: