Tired of my normal movie watching process, which amounts to me spending an inordinate amount of time searching through Netflix, Hulu, or illegal streams searching for the perfect movie only to be interrupted by my constant pausing to do the dishes, or let the dog out, or look at memes on Instagram, I decided to embark on a year journey of returning to the physical cinema thanks to the company MoviePass.

MoviePass is a subscription service that allows you to attend one movie a day at any cinema across the USA. There are minor limitations and exceptions but for the most part the entire world of cinema is open to you all for $9.95 a month (or, if you got lucky like me, $6.95 a month due to a promotional price).

I decided to use this year to explore different movies and to chronicle my experience. Lucky for you that means my movie review game should increase heavily. Most of my reviews will be short and sweet. My rating system will be pretty simple and based on the premise of MoviePass. I will tell you whether or not I would recommend someone who is not a MoviePass user to go out and pay full price to see the film in theaters. Meaning this is more about the experience of how the film plays in the theater than it is a full recommendation of the film. I might love a film but admit there was  no reason for the theater experience. Or I might not enjoy a film but be blown away by visuals that you need to see on the big screen.

I will also chronicle how much money I am saving (or losing) with the MoviePass service. Thanks for reading and click the jump to read about my first official MoviePass film, A Quiet Place.

What’s the most haunting thing about horror movies? Is it the jump scares? The moment where an unidentified ‘something’ leaps out of a seemingly normal place, be it a closet or a shower? Yes that moment might make you physically jump out of your seat and heighten your sensations and send your heart rate sky rocketing but I argue the most haunting thing is the moment before the jump scare. When the music is heightened, then taken down to silence, a moment of ultimate dread because you know somethings about to BAM!!!! 

What would happen if a movie dared to fill its audience with that dreadful quiet for an entire 90 minutes? That’s exactly what A Quiet Place sets out to do. And it loudly succeeds.

When we are introduced to a family of five led by the father Lee Abbott (John Krasinski), we see them creeping around an abandoned store of some sort. Noisy food objects like potato chips are still on the shelves but not much else. Instantly you are aware of every minuscule sound. Every innocent footstep. Every creak of the floor board.

This is the genius behind the film. It’s a horror film that forces the audience to participate. You stop eating your popcorn out of fear of blowing it for the characters. You hesitate grabbing your icy drink despite your dry mouth aching from fear. Because in the absence of sound, you hear how loud the world truly is.

For 90 minutes every minor sound startles you. You start to hear your own heart beat, begging it to quiet down for the sake of the characters on the screen. It’s true horror immersion.

I don’t want to dive too deep into the plot. I feel as if I should keep the film’s secrets as quiet as it’s characters have to be. I will make a recommendation though, plan to see the movie in as quiet of a theater as possible. You don’t want Joe Schmo coughing or chewing his gum. You want total, complete quiet, because you never know when a small noise could be your last.

Worth full theater price? Yes, 100%, if you are a horror fan or a film fan who wants to experience something truly unique in the theater. 

How much MoviePass has paid for my movies: $7.25, 1 movie
How much I paid for MoviePass: $89.95 (year subscription)