Which makes it all the more puzzling that the star of the film, far and away, is Simmonds. Once the plot of "Part II" kicks in, the leads are separated into three groups — Marcus and the baby staying home to quietly rehab, Evelyn setting out to secure supplies, and Emmett chasing Millicent as she follows a mysterious radio broadcast — with that third story increasingly dominating as the film progresses.
Simmonds, who is deaf in real life, brings great growth to her character. It's also inspiring to see a film that flips the world on its ear to the point where Regan's proficiency in sign language and possession of a cochlear implant hearing aid might just be the key to saving mankind, making her a sort of superhero. Cillian Murphy, for his part, has been infusing underwritten roles with a unique mix of sensitivity and quirk for over two decades now, and although Hollywood still doesn't seem to know what to do with him, he takes Emmett a lot farther than the character is written. But their story together isn't particularly compelling, and it seems audiences expecting to see Blunt battling monsters will be disappointed by her lack of screentime.
Aside from that increased focus on Regan and the new character Emmett, the movie is content to be a continuation of the first "A Quiet Place." You could watch the two films back-to-back and aside from closing credits you'd never even notice one had ended and another begun. If you liked the first film, you'll like this; if you feel like the concept is getting old, you might want to just be content to fondly remember the original.
The Oscar-nominated sound editing from the first film (seriously, how did it not win?) is once again the true star here, with Ethan Van der Ryn and Erik Aadahl returning to work their considerable magic. Krasinski once again impresses as director with a Pixies-like aesthetic of loudQUIETloud in orchestrating scenes, encouraging you to savor moments of stillness before startling you with jump cuts that aren't just cheap thrills. The aliens continue to be menacing, but it's interesting that the film sidesteps standard sequel pressures to reveal new powers, different aliens, or give us some kind of bigger, badder, Stay-Puft-like boss monster at the end.
After the initial flashback that opens "Part II," it's hard to not wish Krasinski would just get out of his director's chair and step back in front of the camera. Killing Lee in the first movie seemed like a bold choice at the time, one that caught audiences off guard. But now that "Part II" is here, and with a clear setup at the end for a "Part III," the character's absence feels like a big mistake that even Cillian Murphy's capable efforts can't begin to remedy.
There is some decent, if frequently confounding, world-building achieved through Emmett and Regan's adventure together. They come across some pirate-like feral people whose motivations are ambiguous (whatever they're up to, they're not talking). Later, they find an island of people (including a too-briefly-glimpsed Djimon Hounsou) who provide the duo with some vital information: the creatures cannot swim. These island dwellers seem to be living in a perpetual 4th of July barbecue, where they can talk as loud as they want and not be terribly concerned with what's going on back on the mainland. They also love Bobby Darin, to a point that would make Kevin Spacey jealous.
