PIZZA AND THE APOCALYPSE

For those of you who have yet to watch the first two films in the Quiet Place series, a short introduction.
Back in 2018, actor John Krasinski (“The Office”) wowed Hollywood with a high-concept horror film that he wrote, directed and starred in, along with his real-life wife Emily Blunt.

The film exceeded expectations and shot Krasinski near to the top of young directors.

The story introduced a race of aliens with super-sensitive hearing; the movie’s tagline was “If They Hear You, They Will Hunt You.”

The no-name aliens are as malevolent as they come, with spider-like arms and legs that allow them to scurry at a break-neck speed and with an array of teeth that can rip a body to shreds in mere minutes.

So as the first film opens, Krasinski’s family of five is gingerly walking through woods to an abandoned store in search of provisions. Their every step, unless carefully placed, could be an invitation to a quick and terrifying demise.

Their predicament suggested a nod to the TV enterprise “The Walking Dead,” because the zombies in that series were attracted to loud noises. But in Krasinski’s world, the danger is more finely tuned. Your downfall might be a muffled cough, a snapped twig or a sneeze.

The lessons learned in the first film were that the aliens’ acute hearing could be their downfall, and that they cannot swim.

A sequel delved even more deeply into the aliens’ behavior and it, too, was a huge success.

On its heels, we now have “Day One,” an origin story that takes place in Manhattan.

It stars Lupita Nyong’o and an actor I don’t know well named Joseph Quinn.

And given the familiarity many moviegoers already have with the chittering alien monsters, they are merely a framework that allows Nyong’o and Quinn to shine brightly at the story’s center.

They are two strangers thrown together in the midst of an apocalypse, along with an adorable cat that helps Nyong’o stay grounded while she deals with a cancer growing inside her and kept at bay with medicated patches.

The horror of the alien invasion unfolds swiftly and it’s clear the federal response is to turn Manhattan into an island even more isolated than before, by destroying all the bridges that connect to the rest of New York and New Jersey.

The only safe way out is to head for the South Street Seaport and get on boats evacuating the few who survived the initial wave of the alien creatures. Again, we’re reminded they can’t swim.

But Nyong’o tells her new friend she is heading in the opposite direction—to Harlem—and pizza.

It’s a strange quest in the face of all but certain death but she is determined. It’s great pizza, she insists.

I will say no more about Harlem or the pizza, but the obstacles the pair face are daunting and their trek through damaged buildings and deserted streets is handled with an authenticity that heightens the tension.

This New York City, which on a good day has a decibel level that rivals screaming, is now very much a quiet place that must not be disturbed. The hunters are everywhere.

The plight of Nyong’o and Quinn reminded me of the song “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” because both have inner demons that rival what lurks in the shadows, in a city that itself is bowed and broken.