Written by: Ryan Dailey
The sequel to John Krasinski’s 2018 film A Quiet Place carries on the theme of A Quiet Place being the story of a family wrapped in a horror/sci-fi wrapper. A Quiet Place opens things up with an extended prequel segment, telling the tale of the Abbott family prior to this film’s version of the end of days. This serves the film well, as it introduces new viewers to the world, as well as giving those in the know a refresher course to the rules of the world. The audience is given some more insight into how Lee, played by John Krasinski, is able to survive as long as he did through a simple scene of him cutting an orange with a survival knife. Writing like this, the attention to detail, really places Krasinski in the forefront of carrying the torch of horror through a landscape fraught with remakes and trope-infested drivel.
After the apocalypse is set up, this film picks up where the first one left off. The remaining Abbotts are in their wrecked farmhouse, having just killed one of the creatures. With their safety compromised, the broken family must venture out into the world, further than any of them have been since the onslaught, to find new refuge. Aside from the monster threat, the Abbotts have a newborn to contend with during their travels.
Much like with the first film, the sequel makes sound design one of the main characters. Instead of relying on heavy roars and screaming, the film brings the scares with hold your breath silence, where the slightest noise is deafening and forces the viewer out of their seat. This all ties back into Reagan’s (Millicent Simmonds) disability becoming a great advantage in fighting the threat. Young Reagan fights not only the external threat outside, but also the demons within herself. The teen wants to prove to herself and her family that she can take care of and protect her loved ones in the same capacity that her father did before her.
This film suffers from middle child syndrome, trying to be bigger and better than its older brother, but it actually stands toe to toe. The most recent comparison would be Alien going into Aliens. This means that the world was set up in the first outing and the second one not only moves the story forward, but also packs in more action and bigger set pieces than its predecessor, Both Aliens and A Quiet Place 2 do both of these things masterfully.
A Quiet Place 2 is currently playing in theaters and should be available for streaming through Paramount + on July 12th.