Examined under a certain light, A Quiet Place seems like more gimmick than movie. It’s certainly an easy plot to explain: a family is pursued by monstrous creatures with hypersensitive hearing that attack anything that makes noise and have already wiped out most life on Earth. Like electric buzzers under theater seats (ed. note: we’re playing The Tingler this year), a film that’s all about the characters staying as silent as they can for as long as they can might be a cheap trick, in the hand of inept or manipulative filmmakers — one long jump scare stretched to feature length. But you have to consider: it’s actually scary, like scary for the audience in the real actual world, to sit in a dark movie theater in dead silence. Maybe it’s a trick, but it’s a good one, extending the movie-going experience to another of the five senses. You hear your own blood in your eardrums. Beyond plot and character and cinematography, it creates a real fear response in the viewer. Don’t watch this movie at home, on TV, with your dishwasher running and the lights on. A Quiet Place comes into its own in the cinema. And the Taylor Screening Room at Tampa Theatre is a very, very quiet place.

This screening is held in the Taylor Screening Room. At ticket purchase, you will be asked to select your reserved seat(s). Seating is limited; it is recommended to purchase tickets ahead of time.

VIEW the full 2026 “A Nightmare on Franklin Street” series lineup.