It’s a tale as old as time: In a near future, not too far from our own, the few remaining survivors of some mysterious Earth-shattering incident have carved out a desperate, tenuous living while fighting to survive. There is something undeniably — and satisfyingly — old-fashioned about A Quiet Place; a thriller that examines our place in a society that no longer exists and what it means to be human in the face of monstrous terror. It’s also a knuckle-biting masterclass in escalating tension that establishes John Krasinski as a serious filmmaker capable of crafting one hell of an emotional thrill ride.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe, now in its eighth year, has been known to kickstart a lot of otherwise unknown actors’ careers, and give some their big break while rebooting others’ careers. While Robert Downey Jr. definitely had the biggest name at the start, it wasn’t easy for Jon Favreau to convince the Marvel execs that he was right for Tony Stark, but we’re all so glad he did. Chris Evans’ only other blockbuster credit was as the Human Torch in Fox’s Fantastic Four (2005) and its ill-fated sequel Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007), but his chiseled jawline soon landed him the title role in 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger.