A Quiet Place: Day One review

A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE: 

SOLID HORROR PREQUEL WITH PLENTY OF SCARES! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

PARAMOUNT PICTURES

Lupita Nyong’o and Joseph Quinn in A Quiet Place: Day One

 

            Those alien monsters that really hate sound are back and this time they’re going back to the very beginning in A Quiet Place: Day One, the latest installment of the Quiet Place film series and a prequel/spin-off set before the events of the first movie. This marks the first film in the series not to be directed by John Krasinski though he serves as a producer alongside Michael Bay and is given a story credit with Michael Sarnoski (Pig) as the director. 

            I loved the previous Quiet Place movies (First one is still my favorite) so obviously I wasn’t going to miss this prequel that showed the events that led up to the world going quiet. However, we already got a glimpse of day one at the beginning of A Quiet Place: Part II, but I was still interested in seeing a more fleshed out origin that could also shed some light on the franchise’s lore. 

            Upon seeing it, I definitely got a little more lore out of it compared to the earlier entries, but it’s mostly just another Quiet Place movie except without Emily Blunt and her children. It is still a Quiet Place movie done well and the suspenseful scenes are very effective, but as a prequel it kind of left me wanting more. 

            The film follows Samira or Sam (Lupita Nyong’o-12 Years a Slave, Black Panther 1 and 2, Us), a terminally ill cancer patient living in a hospice in New York City with her service cat, Frodo (Which she totally named after Harry Potter!). However, meteor-like objects suddenly fall from the sky and crash into the city thus releasing hostile extraterrestrial creatures that attack anything and anyone that makes a sound. 

            So, the race is on as Sam and an English law student named Eric (Joseph Quinn-Dickensian, Overlord,Gladiator II) who accompanies her must survive the horrific invasion and find a way out of the city without making a single noise. 

            The film also stars Alex Wolff (Jumanji 2 and 3, Hereditary, Oppenheimer) as Reuben and Djimon Hounsou (Amistad, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Gran Turismo) reprising his role from A Quiet Place: Part II as Henri “The Man on Island”. 

            Overall, A Quiet Place: Day One gives what it promises, a movie that chronicles the events leading up to the first film and shows exactly what happened when the alien monsters crash landed. For the most part it’s done well and retains a lot of what made the earlier entries so chilling though I felt the story could have gone beyond what we got.

            Like maybe you could have shown the creatures’ home planet and what led them to Earth, we already saw in the second movie that they crash landed from space so why not expand on that a little more? I’m not saying this is a bad movie and that the story isn’t engaging, far from it, I just felt there were some missed opportunities to flesh the franchise’s plot out further. 

            I also thought it was odd that people caught on pretty quickly that they need to be quiet in order to survive. It seemed like right after Lupita had woken up from being knocked unconscious during the monsters’ first attack everyone in the city already figured out how to survive and now we’re just watching another Quiet Place movie. 

            I think it would have been stronger paced to show the city in anarchy and panic and over the course of the movie realizing the key to survival is to remain silent. This just felt kind of rushed to me and needed more buildup. 

            Personal nitpicks aside, there’s a lot I really enjoyed about this movie first off, Lupita Nyong’o and Joseph Quinn as the leads. I thought they were great together and had very strong chemistry, I like the dynamic they have as they fight to survive and I wanted to see them prevail. 

            Actually, the fact Nyong’o’s character is a terminally ill cancer patient, it makes an interesting contrast with the rest of the surviving citizens that are now realizing that today might be their last day alive because of the hostile creatures attacking while she’s been thinking about it and possibly even accepting that fate before day one even begun. Just a very thought-provoking character detail that’s worth pointing out among plenty of other human moments between her and Quinn. 

            The scares and chases are very effective and get your anxiety pumping with probably the best sequence being Lupita and Joseph running from the creatures and them breaking car windows to activate the car alarms in order to distract them while they make their escape is a brilliant strategy and exhilarating sequence. Another scene I enjoyed was this moment where they needed to kick down an apartment door during a thunderstorm and they have to kick it as the thunder clashes so they don’t alert the monsters. 

            I can’t say this is a great Quiet Place movie because I thought the previous two movies were better told and paced, but I still think A Quiet Place: Day One is a welcome addition to the franchise. If you enjoyed the earlier films, I can’t see you not getting anything out of this movie though your opinion on it may vary, for me, a good Quiet Placemovie is good enough. 

Kinds of Kindness review

KINDS OF KINDNESS: 

YORGOS LANTHIMOS’ COMPLETELY INSANE ANTHOLOGY FILM! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES

Emma Stone in Kinds of Kindness

 

            Director Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster, The Favourite, Poor Things) strikes again with his latest film, Kinds of Kindness, an absurdist black-comedy anthology film split across three stories that all feature the same actors. Despite only having seen a few of his movies, Yorgos Lanthimos is quickly becoming a favorite director of mine with Poor Things being among my favorite films of 2023. 

            I love Yorgos’ methods of storytelling and how his works are very unconventional, bizarre, and filled with dark humor. His films are definitely an acquired taste, but in an age where a lot of mainstream Hollywood productions feel manufactured and safe, it’s a breath of fresh air to see a film that goes to weird territories and does it successfully because it’s a huge risk. 

            Obviously, I wasn’t going to miss his latest film especially after learning that it was going to be an anthology film similar to New York Stories, Twilight Zone: The Movie, and the film adaptation of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. Yep, this is definitely a Yorgos Lanthimos anthology movie because this film is goddamn nuts and I love it because of that. 

            This is also one of those movies where coming out of it, I didn’t know what to make of it because it was so odd and structured in a strange way. So, I will do my best to attempt to describe this film. 

            The film is split between three distinct but loosely connected stories, The Death of R.M.F., R.M.F. is Flying, and R.M.F. Eats a Sandwich and follows characters portrayed by Emma Stone (Zombieland 1 and 2, La La Land, The Favourite), Jesse Plemons (Black Mass, The Power of the Dog, Killers of the Flower Moon), Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man, The Lighthouse, Nosferatu), and Hong Chau (The Whale, The Menu, Asteroid City) with different names in each story. The first story follows a man without choice who tries to take control of his own life. 

            The second is about a police officer whose wife was missing at sea has returned but seems to be an entirely different person. Finally, the third story follows a woman who is determined to find a specific person with a special ability and is destined to become a prodigious spiritual leader. 

            The film also stars Margaret Qualley (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Poor Things, Drive-Away Dolls), Joe Alwyn (Boy Erased, Mary, Queen of Scots, Harriet), and Mamoudou Athie (Patti Cake$, Jurassic World: Dominion, The Boy and the Heron). 

            Overall, Kinds of Kindness should only be viewed if you’re familiar with Yorgos Lanthimos and his filmmaking style because if you’re just going into this blindly with no knowledge of the director you probably won’t like this movie in the end because of how surreal and unconventional it is. It’s a very complex and challenging movie to the point where even I didn’t always understand where the film was going at random times. 

            When I came into the movie, I forgot it was an anthology film so when credits suddenly appeared like 40 or 50 minutes into the film it was a little jarring but it led to a hilarious story afterwards. Even when the movie actually did end, it genuinely surprised me at the note it ended on and how somewhat abrupt it was. 

            All the acting is top notch especially a scene-stealing Jesse Plemons, but everyone sort of has this weird, robotic way of speaking which seems very intentional to heighten the unusualness of the situations and to imply that there’s something off about this film’s world (or worlds). 

            The three stories essentially revolve around someone going to very extreme and dark lengths to be accepted and admired by people you are devoted to. Sometimes they’re forced into doing something, other times they do it willingly and there are certainly some decisions made that are difficult to grasp or understand which will lead to several interesting conversations and debates amongst moviegoers in the theater lobby after it ends. 

            That’s really the kind of movie this is, a director’s weird and crazy vision brought to the screen that not everyone will have the same reactions to but will be discussed in great detail afterwards. It isn’t pandering to the audience nor is it trying to be a cinematic groundbreaker, it’s Yorgos Lanthimos’ vision for this film and you take it for what it is. 

            Also, false advertising I came into a movie called Kinds of Kindness and I didn’t see any “Kindness” on the screen during my viewing, I want my money back, Lanthimos you sick, pretentious bastard! 

Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1 review

HORIZON: AN AMERICAN SAGA – CHAPTER 1: 

KEVIN COSTNER’S BLOATED BUT DAZZLING FIRST CHAPTER OF HIS WESTERN EPIC! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** ½ out of 4

WARNER BROS. PICTURES AND NEW LINE CINEMA

Kevin Costner in Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1

 

            Kevin Costner (Field of Dreams, Dances with Wolves, Open Range) returns to the Old West in Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, the first of a planned four chapter series of Western films with Chapter 2 being released later…hopefully because at the time of me writing this the second chapter was delayed. I’ll be honest, I’m not a huge Western enthusiast though I do see the appeal of them and there are a handful of movies in the genre I love like Shane, Unforgiven, and the Coen Brothers’ version of True Grit. 

            When I first heard about Kevin Costner’s Horizon films being developed, I was intrigued and that it looked like something that must be seen on the big screen given the size and scope of the film judging by the trailer. Granted, A Quiet Place: Day One and Kinds of Kindness were bigger priorities but now that I got those movies out of the way, how is Kevin Costner’s first chapter of his epic Western series? Eh. 

            I don’t think this is a terrible movie because there are a lot of impressive things about it that should be appreciated, but this movie is a slog and not just because it has a 3-hour runtime. I’m not bitching about movies that are 3 hours long because there are many examples that kept my interest all the way through (The Lord of the Rings, The Godfather, Titanic, Oppenheimer, etc.), but you need to have a strong story and endearing characters to guide the way and I don’t think Horizon does that very well, more on that later. 

            The film is set before and at the beginning of the Civil War and details the exploration of the American West and follows various fictional characters each with their own stories in the fictional town of Horizon. The movie essentially jumps around between characters and stories throughout with no real protagonist such as people on a wagon train being led by Matthew Van Weyden (Luke Wilson-Legally Blonde, Idiocracy, The Skeleton Twins), a woman named Frances Kittredge (Sienna Miller-Layer Cake, American Sniper, The Lost City of Z) and her child surviving a Native American attack, another woman known as Lucy (Jenna Malone-Donnie Darko, Saved!, The Hunger Games franchise) on the run and traveling from Montana to Wyoming and is living with a hooker who has a big heart named Marigold (Abbey Lee-Mad Max: Fury Road, The Dark Tower, Old) and finally becoming entangled with horse trader Hayes Ellison (Costner) among other stories. 

            The film also stars Sam Worthington (Terminator: Salvation, Avatar franchise, Everest) as First Lt. Trent Gephardt, Giovanni Ribisi (Lost in Translation, Avatar, Ted 1 and 2) as H. Silas Pickering, Michael Rooker (The Walking Dead, Super, Guardians of the Galaxy 1 and 2) as Sgt. Major Thomas Riordan, Danny Huston (21 Grams, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Wonder Woman) as Col. Albert Houghton, Jamie Campbell Bower (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, RocknRolla, The Twilight Saga) as Caleb Sykes, Will Patton (Armageddon, Minari, Halloween (2018 trilogy)) as Owen Kittredge, and Isabelle Fuhrman (Orphan 1 and 2, The Hunger Games, From Up on Poppy Hill) as Diamond Kittredge. 

            Overall, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is a solid part of a Western miniseries, but as a movie it’s both an inconsistent mess and a bit of a slog. The 3-hour runtime isn’t the problem, the problem is the plot constantly jumps around between different characters and stories and because there’s no definitive main characters leading the way, it’s hard to be invested in what’s happening and the people involved. 

            On top of that, this is only a portion of a much larger story so it’s difficult to judge it on its own because it’s not a complete package. Avengers: Infinity War is also the first half of a larger story and jumped around a lot but even that felt more complete because the film knew to focus on the characters and its overarching plot between that and Endgame. 

            Here, because there’s so much story and characters to keep track of and not enough time devoted to everything, I’m struggling to even describe what this movie was about and with the long runtime I felt those 3 hours often during my viewing. Unfortunately, I can’t get into this first chapter for the time being despite a lot of hard work going into it which is a shame because there are some aspects of it I really enjoyed. 

            Like I said, this movie isn’t terrible and the things the film does right should be admired especially in terms of the cinematography and production design. This is a gorgeous-looking movie with lots of sweeping shots of the landscapes and towns that do take advantage of the big screen and look spectacular. 

            You can see the money on the screen in every shot with Costner using every cent to make it look as amazing as possible. Even though I didn’t fully get into the story or characters, I enjoyed looking at the film itself on a movie theater screen. 

            Despite the cluttered script, all the acting is solid with nobody phoning their performances in. There’s no huge standouts in the film, but everyone seems to be bringing their A-game here and I appreciate that especially for a movie that’s…not so great. 

            I’m curious to see where the film series will go with later chapters and I’m hopeful it’ll get better as it progresses because as a standalone movie, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is a bloated, unfocused first entry despite some appealing aspects. But maybe people who grew up with a lot of Westerns and are super nostalgic for the genre will find more to appreciate about it so I guess that’s something. 

Washington State Summer Con 2024 Recap