The prequel to 'A Quiet Place' loses none of its voice.
As Sam (Lupita Nyong'o) arrives in New York while receiving end-of-life hospice care for cancer, thousands of meteorites land in the city and with them terrifying aliens that hunt and attack based on sounds. As Sam tries to make her way to Harlem, she encounters Eric (Joseph Quinn), an English law student lost in the city. As the two make their way through the city, more survivors and the wreckage of the alien invasion turns the journey treacherous...
Given how 'A Quiet Place' and 'A Quiet Place: Part II' revitalised the notion of making beautifully-shot horror movies, the notion of setting its prequel in New York City is an interesting one. Indeed, the opening credits of 'A Quiet Place: Day One' cheerfully acknowledges that the average noise level in New York is the same as a human constantly screaming. Within its hour and a little over a half runtime, 'Day One' works with little to no dialogue and instead relies completely on the performances of its two stars - Joseph Quinn, and Lupita Nyong'o.
Though both of them are English, and are at different stages in their career, the connection between the two of them is instantaneous. Both are incredibly expressive without so much as a word passing between them, with Joseph Quinn's sad eyes and lost child demeanour resonating with the determined survival in Lupita Nyong'o. There's a rawness in how both of them play their roles, as Lupita Nyong'o's character is essentially a dead woman walking with nothing to live for, while Joseph Quinn's character is aimless and rudderless with nowhere to go. Yet, in spite of everything, they find something that's missing in the other.
Michael Sarnoski's previous work, 'Pig' with Nicolas Cage, found humanity and vulnerability in the strangest of places and it's the same thing here. Even though the apocalypse and the alien antagonists are off-screen and vaguely sketched, the desperation is presented as real and very much in the forefront. There's a terrifying scene in which a sea of people emerge from the streets of New York and silently - as much as a sea of people can be quiet - march towards the sea in the hope of rescue. All while this is happening, we can see the aliens claw their way towards the inevitable sound of humans together.
If you've seen either of the two previous movies, the central concept of the aliens attacking by sound is nothing new and keeps things neat and simple. They hear a noise, they attack immediately in a frenzy. This, of course, provides certain logical loopholes - like being able to hide underneath falling water or rainstorms, or using thunderclaps to mask certain sounds. The ingenuity is present here, but it's only ever done to push the story and the characters ahead as opposed to being used for the sake of it. More than that, Michael Sarnoski's use of music keeps the emotional beats present when dialogue can't.
As horror prequels go, this is far better than it has any right to be as nearly all are serviceable at best and most often are a cheap cash-in for the studio. The change of setting from bucolic countryside to the heart of the city means the threat is ever more present, and with talented leads shouldering the story and keeping it raw and human, 'A Quiet Place: Day One' is a well-crafted horror-thriller worth (groan) shouting about.