A Quiet Place Part II

By Ephraim Belnap

 To see my review of A Quiet Place, click here

Like its predecessor, A Quiet Place Part II is an emotionally resonant, tensely paced thriller that uses its gimmick to the fullest.

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Directed by: John Krasinski

Starring: Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Djimon Hounsou

Released: May 28 2021

4 out of 5

Gimmicks have dominated the horror genre recently; the hero can’t hear, the villain can’t see, the heroes can’t look at the villain, the villain can’t look at the heroes. But A Quiet Place one-ups the idea with its roots as a family adventure, bringing a widespread appeal and sense of suspense most horror movies can’t follow. It served A Quiet Place well with its $300 million box office returns, and it serves the sequel too, as it expands on the tale of the Abbott family, led by their matriarch Evelyn (Emily Blunt)

(L-R): Milicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, and Emily Blunt as Regan, Marcus, and Evelyn Abbott.

Picking up before the world ended, the film starts with an extended prologue showing the monsters’ arrival in a mysterious meteorite. A humble baseball game goes haywire and the townspeople flee, each scream only making it worse. With a few callbacks and the presence of John Krasinski as the Abbott father, it feels nostalgic and foreboding at the same time, and the build-up to the monsters foreshadows the sense of suspense that peppers the rest of the film. 

From there, the film cuts to the present day, where Evelyn and her kids are leaving their homestead, the property now too damaged to live on. With a baby in hand and a deaf daughter, they’re already at a disadvantage, and while they encounter Emmett - an old family friend - soon after, an encounter with the monsters shows them they’re not safe. “The people left aren’t worth saving,” intones a breathless Emmett. “It’s not just the monsters now.”

(L-R): Cillian Murphy and Djimoun Hounsou star in this feature film

   But Regan, the deaf oldest child, is not giving up, and she sets out on a journey with Emmett, hoping a mysterious radio signal will lead them to sanctuary. The resulting adventure is tense, exciting, and thematically resonant. Regan, played by deaf actress Milicent Simmonds, shines as the new ostensible lead, portraying bravery and vulnerability in equal measure. The set pieces are as good as ever, with booby traps taking advantage of the monster’s super-hearing and a portable speaker serving as sonic warfare. The film is excellently paced, and Emmett, played by Cillian Murphy, gives a good performance as a survivalist/uncle figure in a new world. Emily Blunt is as good as ever as Evelyn Abbott, and even Marcus Abbott (Noah Jape) gets to shine with a few nail-biting sequences, including one with an air-tight safe that will have audiences screaming.

   That said, the film is sadly not quite as good as its predecessor. A minimum of John Krasinski arguably hurts the story, and the ending, while satisfying, feels a bit too abrupt, a little story still left to tell. A spin-off to this film has already been green-lit, due to be directed by the director of the acclaimed family drama Loving. But like many films that don’t anticipate sequels, unless they really do some thinking, they’re going to run out of creative ideas and drop in quality a lot. Success is a double-edged sword and all. But that aside, this film alone is still quite good, and expands the world of A Quiet Place in an exciting and interesting way. Four out of Five Stars.

The Abbott family flees a monster in the first half of the film.

A Quiet Place Part II is now available to watch in theaters.