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.

‘A Quiet Place’ was a sensation when it was released several years ago, thrusting John Krasinski from a guy known as Jim in ‘The Office’ to a director capable of making one of the best tension filled horror movies of recent years. A sequel was inevitable as a result and like that first film, it is absolutely a film that demands to be seen in a cinema – hence the delays of more than a year from the originally intended release date. The good news is that ‘A Quiet Place: Part 2’ is worth the wait – this is a successful sequel that manages to progress the story whilst maintaining the tension inherent in the premise.

For those who haven’t seen the first film (why are you reading this review then? 😉 ) I won’t spoil it, however you can expect ‘Part 2’ to pick off exactly where that film left off, with the Abbott family still striving to survive in a world where a single sound can make the difference between life and death. It begins with an opening ‘flashback’ to the first day when the creatures arrived, prior to the events of the first film, and I really liked how that helped to reassert the audience into the premise of the film. There’s a couple of new characters thrown into the mix, namely Cillian Murphy as a fellow survivor who helps the family when they come across each other, and a group of bad folks led by Scott McNairy cosplaying as Rickety Cricket from ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’, but the heart of the story is still with the family we followed from the beginning.

The attention is spread across everyone but I liked that Millicent Simmonds Regan came to the fore more, almost becoming the defacto lead and forming a strong duo with Cillian Murphy’s Emmett. Splitting the narrative in two was a good choice although on occasion I did think Krasinski used the crosscutting technique too much, or for too long, and it started to take you out of the drama at some key points. I jumped a lot, much like the first film, albeit much more at the beginning than nearer the end when the creatures were more visible. The first film came from nowhere so naturally it would be difficult for ‘Part 2’ to live up to that and it isn’t as good, but it does make for a very enjoyable sequel nonetheless and I’m on board for ‘Part 3’, especially after seeing Jeff Nichols will be involved.

Rating: 4/5

Directed By: John Krasinski

Starring: Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, Cillian Murphy, Djimon Hounsou, Scoot McNairy and John Krasinski

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt8332922/