Feeling the need to give everyone the silent treatment even after exiting the theater, John Krasinski’s A Quiet Place left me without words.

Set in an environment overrun by blind, nameless monsters attracted to sound, a family is struggling to keep their home, communicate, and stay alive all while staying silent. Although there are other families alive, the Abbotts have to focus and care for themselves. Even a pin dropping could put their life on the line, with the monsters racing towards them.

The whole movie encompasses parents’ concern for their children, while also staying true to the situation they are in. Each passing moment of the movie counted toward the story line, without any fluff scenes to allow you to breathe. From beginning to end, it was as if Krasinski made sure to put just enough tear-jerking moments right before the somewhat happy, cliffhanger ending. Although classified as a horror movie, the movie felt more like a thriller, keeping you on the edge of your seat, or clutching the person next to you.

The movie starts off by developing the characters into people you could relate to and somehow care for. One by one, they showed off their strengths and weaknesses of the characters, which only built more to the story. Krasinski plays the father, Lee Abbott, with a strong persona, ready to defend his family in any danger. Evelyn Abbott, played by Emily Blunt, is a pregnant mother who is cautious and carries herself with bravery for her children. The daughter, Regan Abbott, played by Millicent Simmonds, is a somewhat stubborn character, but that also provides her with the determination needed to survive. Her deafness is her main downfall, but it somehow changes into one of her strengths in the end. This characteristic was portrayed really well by Simmonds, an actual deaf actress. Although he’s young, Marcus Abbott, played by Noah Jupe, was a strong child who did his best to help his family. All four of the actors had great chemistry on screen, and portrayed the attachment of a real family.

Although the whole movie was thrilling, the ending shot did not satisfy me. Maybe it was Blunt’s too-determined expression, or because it was a cliffhanger, but I did not particularly like it. The movie left me with a lot of unanswered questions, like how did the outbreak happen, or how they managed to survive this far, but even then, the movie did not disappoint me. It was definitely a movie I wish would have a series of movies, with information on how Earth got overrun by the creatures, or what would happen to the family.

The story made me realize how dependent we are on our senses all through our lives, but we don’t give the action a second thought; sometimes it’s not bad to disconnect from the world in order to protect yourself. After the credits started rolling, I was still sitting in my seat, waiting for something to happen, although I don’t exactly know what. I felt the need to be quiet, like I had all throughout the movie. Finally the time came for me to leave, but instead of being sad, I was satisfied.