A Quiet Place Part II 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray Review

THE MOVIE — 3½/5

Plot Synopsis: Following the deadly events at home, the Abbott family (EMILY BLUNT, MILLICENT SIMMONDS, NOAH JUPE) must now face the terrors of the outside world as they continue their fight for survival in silence. Forced to venture into the unknown, and get help from an old friend (CILLIAN MURPHY), they quickly realize that the creatures that hunt by sound are not the only threats that lurk beyond the sand path.

Review: 2018’s A Quiet Place took the world by storm and was a breath of fresh air, a quality horror-thriller that had plenty of heart to go along with a fun and suspense-filled twist on the creature feature, and ones that attack and kill by sound. Given its massive success, $350 million off of a $22 million budget, it was inevitable that a sequel would be made. With A Quiet Place Part II, I found it to be relatively entertaining but not nearly as good as the first, mostly because the gimmick (mean that with all respect) is no longer mysterious, which would be okay, if the storyline wasn’t on the thin side.

On the plus side, the opening 10 minutes, showing the entrance of these aliens onto earth was pretty good, and it also served as a way to bring back John Krasinski, whose character sacrificed himself in the previous entry. This sequence was done really well and a great way to start off the literal second part, picking up where the last left off.

However, and despite some fine performances, I was left disinterested. This isn’t to say Part II is bad but between some characters actions that don’t make a whole lot of sense (such as the boy venturing out from a safe place to explore a warehouse) in terms of how they behaved the first go around. Basically he makes a head scratching decision that was more annoying than enthralling.

In addition, albeit she is headstrong, there is some stupidity of Regan (Simmonds) going out on her own to find a mysterious radio signal playing the song “Beyond the Sea” on repeat (which itself is problematic), the origin pointing to an island of potential survivors. Although she is of strong character, someone who is completely deaf might not be right person to go on a treacherous journey, I would think even she would understand that.

Cillian Murphy is the, more or less, replacement for Krasinski, and appears the apocalyptic future is right in his wheelhouse as one of his early standout roles was 2002’s 28 Days Later. He’s perfectly serviceable here, with a couple nice scenes as he bonds with Regan. Djimon Hounsou meanwhile has a small, thankless, role that he seems to be taking nowadays (see Aquaman) but he does have the charisma for these types of parts, just wish he’d get the opportunity to lead or co-star as he had with Gladiator.

John Krasinski returns to direct and while the story might’ve been on the weaker side, his direction was solid enough. He does manage to capture some moderate suspension. On the technical side, I thought the CGI work on the aliens weren’t half bad at all. They’re not terribly creative but frightening enough.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 2½/5

This release comes with a slip cover and inside is a redemption code for the Digital HD copy.

Director’s Diary: Filming with John Krasinski (9:38) — Behind the scenes with Krasinski discussing the making of the sequel.

Pulling Back the Curtain (3:47) is on the expansion of the apocalyptic/alien infested world.

Regan’s Journey (6:19) looks at Millicent Simmonds’s character and her role in this sequel.

Surviving the Marina (5:00) expands on a key sequence near the end.

Detectible Disturbance: Visual Effects & Sound Design (8:26) is on the technical aspects of the film.

4K VIDEO – 4¾/5, BLU-RAY VIDEO – 4½/5

Paramount releases A Quiet Place Part II onto 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray, presented in its original 2.39 widescreen aspect ratio and given a 2160p and 1080p high-definition transfer, respectively. The picture here on both formats is fairly sturdy, detail is sharp throughout and black levels look nicely balanced with the edge going to the 4K format however the Blu-ray still looks quite good, just not as sharp, but neither disc showed any signs of aliasing or artifacts.

AUDIO – 4¾/5

The discs come with a strong Dolby Atmos track, which showcases both the obviously quiet scenes as well as those sequences when the aliens attack and kill. Dialogue, both whispers and out loud, comes across very well and clearly, as does the modest score composed by Marco Beltrami (Scream franchise). It’s an excellent lossless track and one with a wide range that would make for near reference quality.

OVERALL — 3¾/5

A Quiet Place Part II might not be as good as its predecessor but I still would say it’s worth a watch as there are some moments of suspense even when characters make questionable decisions. I do hope to have a third one to round out a trilogy as this one does feel like one of those bridging movies.