Director: John Krasinksi

Stars: Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe

John Krasinski’s first ‘A Quiet Place’, in which a family fought off blind, sound-sensitive mysterious monsters in their farmhouse, made a virtue of its simplicity, it’s clammy claustrophobia and sense of isolation chiming with audiences long after the film’s release. This sequel, while it has the odd tense moment, feels surplus to requirements.

It starts strongly with a prologue sequence set before the events of the first picture, in which the Abbot parents, mum Evelyn (Blunt), dad Lee (Krasinksi, briefly reprising his role), along with their hearing impaired daughter Regan (Simmonds) are cheering along their shy awkward son Marcus (Jupe) in a baseball game. The match is interrupted when fiery meteorites appear in the sky, followed by an invasion of viscous giant spider monsters (presumably aliens). The monsters didn’t really warrant a back story but it’s an effective enough, dread-infused sequence.

Fast forward to just after the events of the last film where the widowed Evelyn, her new baby and two children are still holding out in a farm, occasionally venturing out for supplies.  Stumbling on an old iron foundry they encounter Emmett (Murphy) an old friend of Evelyn’s late husband who lives in an underground bunker.  Traumatised by events he is unable to commit to helping the family. Then, when the ever resourceful Regan works out that a radio transmission may be a cryptic signal from other survivors (why the message has to be cryptic isn’t really explained; maybe the monsters are smarter than they act) she secretly sets out to find them. Reluctantly, Emmet goes after her.

Krasinski cuts between Regan and Emmet’s quest and Evelyn and Marcus’s struggle to survive, setting up parallels to often convoluted and frustrating effect, while the alternating between sweaty suspense sequences and breathless chases begins to feel a bit rote and repetitive.  The sound design is as impressive as ever and, while Murphy doesn’t make much impression in an underwritten part, the returning cast are impressive, particularly Simmons whose expression of wide-eyed terror is more eloquent than any CGI effects. A very abrupt, almost random-seeming, ending suggests another sequel will follow

A Quiet Place Part II is released 3rd June

David Willoughby 

Follow David on @DWill_Crackfilm