In 2018, actor John Krasinski showed the world his directing chops with the release of A Quiet Place. A horror film revolving around a family in a post-apocalyptic America that has been taken over by monsters with ultra-sensitive hearing. Krasinski enlisted his real-life wife, Emily Blunt, to play the pregnant mother of the family along with, in an inspired piece of casting, deaf actress Millicent Simmonds to play the family’s deaf daughter. After a buzzy marketing campaign, the film was released to massive critical and commercial success. This was quite a shock for the vast majority, as most didn’t think Jim from The Office would have such a masterful command over this genre! He had some directing experience under his belt with a few episodes of The Office and a little-seen film called The Hollars, but nothing to suggest he would be so adept at crafting a big-budget horror smash hit.
Paramount quickly moved to capitalize on its success and released the film in March 2020… just kidding. The film had its world premiere in 2020, but it wouldn’t be until May 2021, more than a year after due to COVID delays, that A Quiet Place Part 2 would receive a proper theatrical release. This direct follow-up focuses on the surviving members of the family as they escape their farm and attempt to find safety and shelter elsewhere. The sequel was given an expanded budget and Krasinski used it to flesh out the ravaged world with more enigmatic characters and haunting locations. That larger budget paid off in spades as the film did gangbusters, setting pandemic opening weekend records, and by doing so, injecting life into the struggling movie theater business. Paramount cashed in on this success further by not only green-lighting a third film, but also a spinoff, A Quiet Place: Day One, set to release a year apart. But before we arrive at A Quiet Place Part 3, we have to find out which is the superior film: the original or the sequel? whisper Get ready for a very quiet… FACE OFF!
This episode of Face-Off is written by Paul Cooper, narrated by Chris Bumbray, and edited by Paul Cooper. But don’t let us have the final word — tell us in the comments which post-apocalyptic flick is your pick. A Quiet Place or A Quiet Place: Part 2?