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A Quiet Place Part II Movie Review

A Quiet Place Part II is a 2021 science fiction horror film directed by John Krasinski and starring Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds and Cillian Murphy. It’s a very strong sequel.

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“RUN!“

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Following the events at home, the Abbott family now face the terrors of the outside world. Forced to venture into the unknown, they realize the creatures that hunt by sound are not the only threats lurking beyond the sand path. This sequel did exactly what I’d expected it would do – it expanded the world of the original, but only to a degree, thus effectively still focusing on the central characters’ drama and leaving a lot of room for more sequels.

The movie begins with one of the best opening sequences in blockbuster history. This is the only part where Krasinski was present on screen as Lee, and it worked like a charm. It is a terrific flashback sequence that gives us a glimpse into the first moments of the aliens’ arrival on the meteorite. That imagery was instantly iconic while the ensuing action is the best in the entire movie. It was all brilliantly executed with the bus moment being particularly intense.

Although the film never reached the level of brilliance of that opening, that was to be expected. The storyline that unfolded afterward was still worth the long wait. Emmett is a particularly strong addition to the character roster as this scared man whose family all died and he is now distrustful of other people and frightened to leave his shelter. His character arc and relationship with Regan were this movie’s heart while the performance from Cillian Murphy is expectedly terrific. He has never looked this rugged, making it a different role for him.

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Regan has by now become a genuine hero and the idea that she would turn her disability into a power against the alien persecutors still felt quite powerful, although the movie otherwise did not quite feel as sophisticated as the original. Millicent Simmonds is terrific once again and I hope she will get more work in the future.

The characters got separated into two and at some point even three different stories and following all of them simultaneously was quite intense. It was brilliantly edited with this department being one of the highlights of the picture along with the usually fantastic direction from John Krasinski who really needs to get another major gig after this franchise as he’s proven by now to be immensely talented behind the screen.

It was a bit disappointing for me that Emily Blunt wasn’t as present nor as integral to this movie as she was back in the original. She was still great and her performance was expectedly incredible, especially her facial expressions, but this film definitely changed focus and turned to the children, which was an interesting choice that mostly worked. They grew some truly amazing, badass kids and these are the future of the world, so it was only natural that they were the ones to save the day this time around.

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Noah Jupe was less memorable than Simmonds and his part of the story was solid, but less entertaining. Djimon Hounsou himself was wasted, though I definitely liked the idea of an island as the haven for society as the aliens can’t swim in that excellent reveal. Those feral people felt undercooked for me, and overall I wanted a more ambitious ending, but for the most part the simplicity of this franchise and its minimalism were intact. It’s just that some of sophistication and innovation were lost this time around. But the aliens are still creepy, the sets are truly magnificent and the movie is wonderfully shot that it’s a blast to watch.