‘A Quiet Place Part II’ Review: The Silent Treatment is Back for a Second Instalment
John Krasinski shuffles his deck to produce a slick, tension-filled thriller that’s all about exploring its own world.
Source: Paramount Pictures
The Abbott family’s tension-filled world is back in the sequel to the 2018 horror hit, “A Quiet Place”. Much like its predecessor “Part II” immerses the viewer in an environment where communication is the top priority. Lip-reading, sign language and various body or facial gestures are very much the valued currency in the battle against hypersensitive monsters. While the sequel may lack the emotional punch of the first instalment, it nevertheless broadens its scope, peering into wider repercussions that were only hinted at before.
The prologue sets the tempo for these far-reaching consequences. The first few frames capture the same images of the small American town, but this time the traffic lights and shop windows appear in an idyllic setting. It is Day 1, and a flashback shows Lee (John Krasinski) and the Abbott family attending a baseball game moments before the aliens arrive via a meteorite, a nice touch that represents America’s pastime. The sequence ends with the destructive potential of the aliens, editing young Marcus’ scream (Noah Jupe) to jump forward into the present. It is this simple but effective transition that is again an early indication of how vital editing will prove for the story.
In the present, we pick up right where we left off following Lee’s sacrifice. Even a close-up of the nail that pierced Evelyn’s foot (Emily Blunt) and the splattered remains of the alien remind us of the previous events. The flooded house and lack of oxygen for the newborn baby force the Abbotts to venture out past their borderlines, marked by the end of the sand trail. This takes the story into new territory, leaving behind its strategic home-invasion quality for a more on-the-run survival feel. Greatly benefited by Polly Morgan’s slick cinematography, the camera accentuates this change in setting. If the first film was based on defending a stationary home, the second is much more in motion as the Abbotts search the derelict remains of what lies beyond. Morgan’s camera is rarely static. It breathes life into the restlessness of the narrative, panning, craning and tracking the Abbotts through various deserted landscapes. Some of the more mundane dialogue scenes (which appear more often than its precursor) even showcase slight Fincher-esque camera movements so that the frame can match the direction and velocity of its characters.
Treading new ground introduces us to the newest survivor of the alien invasion, former neighbor Emmett (Cillian Murphy). Disgruntled and suffering from the death of his wife and son, Emmett’s sole focus is self-preservation, quickly suggesting that the Abbotts cannot stay long in his survival bunker at an abandoned steel foundry. The sense of loss and trauma at the heart of Murphy’s character sets him up for a redemptive story arc, bringing his experience from previous roles to capture the suffering of Emmett. Not only does his well-known role as Thomas Shelby in “Peaky Blinders” provide some influence, but it also calls to mind his recent performance as a bereaved widower in the theatrical adaptation of Max Porter’s novel, “Grief is the Thing with Feathers”. Heavily contrasted with the opening scene of the first “AQP” when the young Abbott boy is innocently killed, Emmett’s damaged personality is much more subtle without any direct visual indication of his own journey since Day 1.
Cillian Murphy as Emmett in A Quiet Place Part II.
Tensions begin to rise between Emmett and the Abbotts when hearing-impaired Regan (Millicent Simmonds) deduces that a looped broadcasting of Bobby Darin’s “Beyond the Sea” is a message to look for a nearby island colony. Committed to spreading the word that transmitting the high frequency noise of her hearing aid is a weapon against the monsters, Regan is adamant that they must track down the broadcast. Emmett has other ideas in mind, however, stating that survivors have become ruthless savages who will do anything to preserve their own self-interests. Regan is much more self-assured and confrontational in this sequel, aggressively holding her own opposite Murphy. She even reminds Emmett that he is nothing compared to Lee. It allows Simmonds to bring a more frustrated but valiant angst to the character, self-aware of a brutal and patronizing adult world. Despite the passionate plea from her brother to stay, Regan sneaks out alone to find the radio tower. The next morning Evelyn discovers that Regan has left and implores Emmett to bring her back, citing her late husband that she is worth the risk of saving. Evelyn is also forced to secure more oxygen, leaving Marcus alone with the newborn and thus setting up the three separate events that will dictate the remainder of the narrative.
Much like its predecessor, this is where “Part II” relies heavily on parallel editing that cuts between Regan and Emmett as they search for the island, Marcus alone in the steel foundry with the newborn, and Evelyn’s hunt for supplies. A necessary mention must be made here to editor, Michael P. Shawver, who manages to take Krasinski’s more expansive vision and knit together separate narratives that ensure a seamless rhythmic flow. While Evelyn returns to familiar territory in the same pharmaceutical store from the first feature, the sense of world-building relies more on the relationship between Regan and Emmett forging a path down an abandoned railway line. “Part II” is still anchored by a tight family focus but actor-director Krasinski aims to pry open the claustrophobic farmhouse setting in order to ask the question: how have others been affected by the alien invasion?
This leads him down new alleyways, but also into the tropes of the post-apocalyptic genre. Regan and Emmett explore the good and bad traits of a dog-eat-dog world. They come across both the skulking presence of a vulture-like gang led by the appearance of a shaggy Scoot McNairy and a far-removed pastoral community emitting the broadcast, influenced by the calming persona of Djimon Hounsou. One doesn’t have to look deeply into the genre to observe the image of a morally divided civilization. It’s evident in various films from the brutal scavengers and the group intent on preserving society in “The Book of Eli” to the gang of cannibals and the protective family that adopts the young boy in “The Road”.
Outside the farmhouse Krasinski is still very much insistent on the united front of the family. Yet there is a more developed feel to the dynamic following the loss of Lee, complicating the familial roles. Just as Blunt and Murphy reassert a protective presence, it is the power of youth that steals the show. Both Regan and Marcus are less reliant on role models and more resolute in their fight for survival. Regan’s integrity comes into its own, showcasing how her auditory weakness becomes her greatest power. She may have found inspiration in her father’s inventiveness and resolve – crafting a weapon by hooking up the frequency of her hearing aid to an amp – but Regan is more insistent on using her creation in the quest for greater liberation. Simmonds, who suffers from hearing loss herself, creates her own powerful role model which stands as an inspiration for the Deaf community. In the end, Regan proves the kids are alright, overturning a paternal/maternal edifice and seeing how a little bit of trust can go a long way.
One of the greatest cinematic achievements of the first film was the emphasis on sound design, supervised by Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn, which paid off in an Oscar nomination. Forcing spectators into the perspective of Regan, the film momentarily cut all sound as the aliens lurked behind her. In the follow-up – both Aadahl and Ryn are back on board – this use of collective impairment resurfaces. Maybe it doesn’t quite recreate the excruciating uneasiness as it did in the first, but it still shows how Krasinski and his crew will carry on experimenting with sound (or the lack of) as a means of driving the story. The use of silence in “Part II” is most effective when slowly revealing deliberately or accidently placed obstacles in the way. In potentially the finest scene at capturing this feeling, the audience is asked to hold their breath as Regan’s foot is just about to knock over a coffee mug. When a last-second body shuffle allows her to avoid the grave reverberations if it was to fall, a sigh of relief can finally be taken. Perhaps this is where the “AQP” series is at its best: scenes that are suspended across a life-or-death tightrope as though its characters are playing the world’s most deadly game of Operation.
Audiences may have been expecting another gut-wrenching ending after Lee’s sacrifice, but “Part II” is less concerned with our emotional heart strings and instead wants to explore its own world. Dropping the sacrificial elements, we are instead treated to a more extensive field of view with another cliffhanger that may already have in mind the third instalment set to be released in 2022. One may even feel that it’s a little too concerned with its vision of a future franchise rather than crafting a unique story that made the first film such a success. This should in no way diminish Krasinski’s or his crew’s efforts though. If at times the narrative may find itself embroiled in establishing its own universe, this does not take away from how well-crafted that universe is. With various helping hands, harmonious crosscutting brought to life with an intoxicating ravaged environment that at any moment can be plunged into silence makes for an entertaining and gripping thrill-ride; it is one that ultimately signals why director Krasinski is not afraid to explore the filmmaking craft.