Every A Quiet Place Movie, Ranked Worst To Best

Warning! This article contains spoilers for A Quiet Place: Day One

Summary

  • A Quiet Place Part II continues the story of the Abbott family, introducing new characters and expanding the franchise.
  • A Quiet Place: Day One explores the first day of the alien invasion, focusing on new characters and their connections.
  • The original A Quiet Place introduced the concept of deafness and family ties in a unique alien invasion horror story.

John Krasinski’s horror series, A peaceful placeburst onto the scene in 2018 and due to its overwhelming success, immediately warranted expansion into a larger franchise. Following his incredibly popular role as Jim Halpert in The officeJohn Krasinski set out to conquer other areas of Hollywood. He starred in new TV shows and movies, and even became a screenwriter and director, becoming a multi-faceted star with great success in various media.

In 2018, Krasinski got his biggest break as a writer and director when A peaceful place grossed over $330 million on a budget of just $17 million (via The numbers), an Oscar nomination and several other awards. Since then, A peaceful place has expanded into a franchise with a sequel and a prequel, expanding the world and the alien creatures that serve as central antagonists. Each entry contributes something to the franchise in some way, with compelling new stories.

3 A Quiet Place Part II

Emily Blunt with her children in A Quiet Place Part II

Coming in third place, A quiet place part II is the second entry in the franchise and continues the story of the Abbott family. Over a year after the invasion began, most of the population has been slaughtered by the terrifying alien invaders. Following Lee’s death at the end of the original film, the rest of his family – wife Evelyn (Emily Blunt), son Marcus (Noah Jupe) and deaf daughter Regan (Millicent Simmonds) – search for another place to stay safe after losing their home.

This sequel also introduces the character Emmet, played by Cillian Murphy, as an old friend of the Abbott family. Despite a sparse cast, those involved excelled in their roles, with Emily Blunt and Cillian Murphy delivering seasoned performances, as one would expect from actors of their experience and calibre, and their younger co-stars matching their talents. Both Jupe and Simmonds have pivotal roles in the film, as they deliver emotional and impactful performances that transform them from scared children into the true heroes of the film.

2:32 a-quiet-place-emily-blunt-a-quiet-place-day-one-djimon-hounsou-lupita-nyong-o Related movies of A Quiet Place in order

There are three films in the post-apocalyptic A Quiet Place franchise, but they can be watched in chronological order or in release order.

A quiet place part II is the perfect sequel to the original film, staying true to the horror style and maintaining a spirit of grim anguish, but also uniting the characters through their struggles. With the loss of Lee, played by John Krasinski, the children must step up and take on greater responsibilities for caring for and protecting their family. Regan cleverly devises a way to fight the monsters on a nationwide scale, and Marcus becomes the man of the Abbott family, protecting the baby and making sure his mother doesn’t carry the burden of responsibility alone.

However, A Quiet Place Part II The film suffered from its status as a sequel, which meant it didn’t maintain the element of surprise with the monsters. Krasinski’s absence is palpable, although it is necessary for the story to advance faithfully. Additionally, the film naturally evolved beyond being a sci-fi horror film into something more dystopian and hopeful. None of that is a bad thing, but the stakes in the other installments are higher, the horror is more visceral, and the stories are more focused and individual.

By saying all this, A quiet place part II It also had major hurdles to overcome as the film was released during the COVID outbreak, which would have definitely affected the film’s sales. Despite this, A Quiet Place Part II managed to raise almost 300 million dollars (through The numbers), just behind the total box office gross of the original. This feat is even more impressive considering that the film was also released on Paramount+ just 45 days after its theatrical debut, which would have further dented box office sales.

2 A Quiet Place: Day One

Eric and Sam race through New York in A Quiet Place Day One.

A Quiet Place: Day One It flashes back to the first day of the alien invasion, specifically highlighting the experience of a small group of people who become trapped on the island with the alien invaders. At the center of the story, Lupita Nyong’o stars as Sam, a terminally ill woman who takes a day trip with a group from her hospice, her nurse, and her cat to New York. When the invasion comes, Sam and several others find themselves alive thanks to quickly learning that noise alerts the monsters and they must remain silent.

Images from A Quiet Place, Day One, 1 Related A Quiet Place: The End of the First Day Explained

A Quiet Place: The first day ends with an important character decision and some hope. We break down the most important aspects of the prequel ending and what it means.

Nyong’o is incredibly natural in the role, highlighting a somewhat nihilistic outlook as she remains doomed to imminent death, either at the hands of monsters or simply waiting it out. Alongside her is Joseph Quinn as a young man named Eric, a British citizen studying law in the US. Sam is one of the first people Eric sees and, like a lost puppy, decides to remain loyal to him. Both actors do a fantastic job, exploring a natural chemistry that perfectly captures two loners at the end of the world, simply enjoying a platonic human connection.

The beauty of the film comes from bringing to life an idea that has been explored in two different films in a new light. While the first film hid the monsters from view in almost every scene, the sequel increased their presence. In Day oneThe creatures are out of control, newly arrived on Earth, and the audience discovers them along with the characters on screen. It also highlights human connection, as an inherent need that humans possess. The film is simple, heartbreaking, hopeful, and dark, and weaves these emotions together with incredible fluidity.

Because of this nuance, and the evolution of the story despite its prequel nature, A Quiet Place: Day One Deserves second place. Not only does it offer a story with new characters and make it as interesting and exciting as the previous two installments, but it creates beautiful connections between characters who have nothing in common except their humanity. Sam has already given up on life, choosing to pursue his dream of eating pizza instead of trying hard to stay alive. And despite Eric’s good health, he gives up his efforts to escape the island to help Sam achieve that dream.

This film also marks the first entry in which John Krasinski handed over directing and script control to someone else. Michael Sarnoski took on double duty as writer and director on the project and did an excellent job carrying the franchise forward while still feeling connected to the originals. Along with the monsters that appear in all three films, Djimon Hounsou returns after his brief role in Part II to further establish his character within the series and highlight the difficult decisions he had to make to become a leader in a fallen world.

Sam from A Quiet Place, Day One Related How Scary and Violent is a Quiet Place: The First Day Compares to Previous Movies

A Quiet Place: Day One is a solid entry in the series, and here’s how it compares to the scares and violence of the previous films.

1 A quiet place

Lee Abbott (John Krasinski) wearing headphones trying to establish communication from a transmitter in A Quiet Place - Day One Official Trailer Image via Paramount Pictures

The original A peaceful place It hit theaters in 2018 and introduced the concept of an alien invasion of monsters that were completely deprived of sight, but possessed a keen sense of hearing that helped them hunt. Once again, the film focuses on a group of people who tell an emotional and compelling story. The Abbott family has an advantage in this alien invasion due to the family’s knowledge of sign language, due to their daughter being deaf. With a new baby, the Abbott family must get creative in creating fortifications to keep the family safe from the monsters lurking outside.

Blunt, Jupe and Simmonds play Evelyn, Marcus and Regan Abbott, and they are joined by Krasinski as the family patriarch, Lee. The chemistry between Blunt and Krasinski is enhanced by their real-life marriage, which translates well to their roles as husband and wife. Additionally, their connection with the children contributes to a strong, resourceful and endlessly innovative family unit. All of the actors masterfully portray the film’s emotional highs and lows, which are nothing short of remarkable.

With the novelty of the film as it introduced the series, and Krasinski’s work both behind and in front of the camera, A peaceful place goes beyond a typical monster movie. Exploring disability and its unique strengths in an impossible situation, exploring the unbreakable bond between a family, and creating a world filled and rich with history, despite being the first entry, all adds up to make this movie what it is.

All things considered, A peaceful place is the obvious choice for the top spot, being the most critically acclaimed and the original. Krasinski’s idea is conveyed through the lens of him as an actor and director, and his vision is fully realized. But even beyond this, the film stands out as one of the most unique horror stories of all time.

Custom image of John Krasinki and a monster in A Quiet Place Related A Quiet Place: Why Monsters Don’t Eat the Humans They Kill

In the Quiet Place franchise, alien monsters don’t eat the humans they kill. We look at why that’s important for the future of the series.

Yes, there are other alien horror movies, there are even horror movies that explore what happens when victims are restricted from using a key sense, such as Bird boxbut there is a reason A peaceful place It has spawned a series of films. The story is rich, the characters are thoroughly developed, and the films explore the human condition when things are taken from us: your ability to speak, your freedom, your connection to others. A peaceful place It is disturbing, not only because there are monsters lurking around every corner, but because they threaten some of the pure and simple parts of the human experience.

Leave a Comment