- Grade: B
- Recommend: 87%
Plot (Non-Spoiling)
This American horror film focuses on the Abbott family 89 days after the Earth is taken over by extraterrestrials. The invading aliens are blind, but compensate by relying on their hypersensitive hearing ability to locate and kill humans. By the 89th day, almost all of the human race has perished. The Abbott family consists of parents Evelyn (played by Emily Blunt) and Lee (played by John Kransinski), and their three kids, Marcus (played by Noah Jupe), Regan (played by Millicent Simmonds), and Beau (played by Cade Woodword). A constant struggle ensues as the family must prioritize minimizing the sound they make every day to stay alive against a seemingly indestructible enemy. Evelyn and Lee feel weak because they can barely keep their children safe, but try to see the world in a day-to-day survival mindset so they do not become overwhelmed with fear. However, they understand that the inevitable is bound to happen soon: a sound will be made.
Diversity
The main cast in this film consisted of just a single family. The only other character was random for one other scene. Therefore, the main cast was 100% white because Krasinski and Blunt (spouses in real life) were parents with no adopted kids. The family was also 60% or 50% male (depending on the time in the film), but the female characters were very strong in the film. Behind the camera, where there is no limit on diversity, the numbers truly lacked diversity. The director, writers, and producers were 100% white and 75% male.
Review
This film was built on an excellent foundation because the basis for the apocalypse was very original. I was fascinated by this fresh dystopic world idea, and John Krasinski deserves praise for his acting and directing of the film. Acting overall was very good and the casting choice to have a deaf actor play Regan, a deaf character, was necessary to maintain the realism of Regan’s communication skills. The American Sign Language in the film seemed to be accurate and nothing I researched stated the contrary. The big problem in the film is how much damage the aliens were said to have done to Earth. They weren’t large enough or unstoppable enough to rationally be seen as able to take over the world. If the alien presence was similar to Battle: Los Angeles (larger or an actual invading force), it would have been more believable. Therefore, the grade dropped to the B’s. All in all, it is a solid watch with terrific parental themes and terrifying aliens.
