The 5 most nail-biting sequences in A Quiet Place: Day One

With A Quiet Place: Day One now in theaters and receiving excellent reviews, we're highlighting some of our favorite sequences and moments from the best film in the trilogy (yeah, I said it!).

From Sam and Erik's many tender moments together to the heartstopping chase sequences and anxiety-inducing moments of fear when someone makes a noise, A Quiet Place: Day One is one of the year's best horror movies.

First contact

Even though I wanted more from the "day one" premise, the initial scene where the Death Angels crash land on Earth is still terrifying. Sam and many of the other hospice residents are forcefully thrown off their feet as one of the aliens plummets to earth nearby, creating a huge explosion that immediately raises the stakes and establishes the tone for the rest of the film.

Sam trapped under the car

Joining the crowd pushing toward the harbor to escape the city on a boat (since the creatures can't swim without sinking like a stone), Sam finds herself trampled and desperate for cover as panic breaks out amid another attack.

She takes cover beneath a car, only for half of it to get crushed and sink onto her legs as the tire holding the rest of the car up slowly deflates. For a moment, it looks like Sam could get crushed to death, or at least lose a leg, but luckily, she manages to pull herself free at the last second.

The subway tunnel

My favorite sequence in the movie sees Erik and Sam venture into a flooded subway tunnel to get across the city. Poor Erik has PTSD from initially emerging from a subway tunnel earlier in the film, so being back inside puts him on the verge of panic. Not ideal when you're trying to quietly swim away from a monster and keep a cat afloat.

Seeing the Death Angel stalk Erik and Sam by crawling across the ceiling was incredibly done with sound design and everything. We also get to see exactly what happens when they try and swim as this one delves into the water to follow its prey and immediately sinks to the bottom.

Erik's side quest to get medicine with Frodo

Without her medicine, Sam starts to feel the side effects of her illness, so Eric embarks on a little side quest to retrieve what she needs from a nearby pharmacy. Of course, while he's out, Frodo runs off and Erik is forced to follow him to an abandoned construction site infested with Death Angels.

He's forced to stay completely still and silent as the creatures eat something nearby, and we get a close-up of the monster's face. It's cool to see one of the Death Angels up close and personal, getting a look behind their creepy face plates and ears (?).

The climax

A Quiet Place: Day One culminates in a bada** ending that features Sam using a crowbar to smash a bunch of car windows and set off a multitude of alarms and various noises to distract the prowling creatures away from Erik, who takes Frodo and finally escapes onto one of the last boats leaving the harbor.

It's both a sad and uplifting scene as Erik says goodbye to Sam and Sam prepares to die. And yes, I did cry when I realized Sam had given Erik her father's coat. Then we get that brilliant final frame with the perfect needle drop to Nina Simone's "Feeling Good," as Sam blasts her music out loud and one of the creatures drops behind her on beat.

Honorable mention: Sam finally gets her pizza

Apart from the subway tunnel chase, the scene where Erik and Sam revisit the pub where Sam's father used to play piano is beautifully executed and cements the film's real focus, which is the connection between Sam and Erik. It's a heartwarming, tender scene, and it's so cute seeing Erik try to cheer Sam up and finally get her the pizza she's been after this whole time.

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