A Quiet Place Part II (2021)

User Review

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  d_riptide

  9 / 10

  Once upon a time, there was a film called A Quiet Place and it blew a lot of people away in 2018, including myself. Outside of a unique premise, backstory and setup that was very engrossing, it cemented itself as one of the few legitimate bone-gripping horror films in recent memory, an adversary worthy of the acclaim and accolades it achieved. So when I heard there was A Quiet Place: Part II on the horizon, my tickets were booked to the Max. Simplicity was the name of the game the first time around, a stronghold over what made it shine the brightest compared to other horror/thriller films and I gotta say, Krasinski.....
  
  .....you’ve done it again. I’m just gonna flat out say it: this sequel isn’t just as great as the first film, it almost convinced me for a fragment of a second to put my faith in sequels again.
  
  
  
  I’m amazed at how Krasinski was able to streamline but also broaden out and enlarge the premise of the first film and cross it with this gloomy, post-apocalyptic atmosphere reminiscent of The Walking Dead and The Last Of Us. Thanks to a vast increase in scope and scale and an array of new settings, there’s no doubling down on the formula of the first film more than it upped the ante regarding this nuanced take on the genre as a whole.
  
  There’s tight compact scenes that start at the right moment and end just the same; suspense is always heightened to 11 with white knuckled tension throughout, the characters are always favored with the monster action that is centered around them and the characters within themselves are either given a lot more to do and expanded upon their previous outings or are already emotionally grounded and understanding. Cinematography is always framed with very satisfying symmetry from beautiful overhead shots to the claustrophobia of cramped-spaces, the brilliant sound design once again buoys the journey of not only creating some of the films best scares but also putting us into Regans shoes, the opening sequences sets the tone for the film masterfully from the very beginning and the pacing just flows seamlessly from there.
  
  While Emily Blunt is a powerhouse as always and Cillian Murphy nails this emotionally stunted performance, it’s Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe that carry most of the emotional heft of the movie, bringing out even more nominations for eventual best performances of the year.
  
  
  
  
  You cannot believe how terrified I was under the notion that sequelitus would cripple a formula that already worked for such an inventive film and sure, you can say the ending isn’t as emotionally resonant as it’s predecessor which.....you’d be right due to how abruptly it ends. Sure, I’m also inclined to believe Hereditary is the go-to for modern high-concept horror but Kransinski created something really special with this series and here, he continued to update its formula with more real-world sensibilities and modesty while being very careful to not betray the humanity behind its own success.
  
  
  Give us Part III, please please PLEASE give us Part III.

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