STACK #202 Aug 2021

FILM FEATURE

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“The idea was about extending the metaphor of parenthood to see how far you could take it exploring that natural evolution that happens when your kids leave the safety of home to go out into the world. “There’s so much more to

experience beyond the farm,” he adds. “But even though we’re greatly expanding the world and the scale of the story, the

• A Quiet Place Part II is out on Aug 11

intimacy comes from the fact that the rules remain the same. It was very creatively exciting for us to have this

When he began working on A Quiet Place in 2017, writer- director John Krasinski never imagined the film would resonate so profoundly with audiences and that two years later, he would begin production on a sequel. Words Adam Colby S et in the aftermath of an invasion by blind alien monsters that zero in on any living creature that makes a sound, A Quiet BEYOND THE SILENCE Director John Krasinski

chance to create much bigger set pieces that still feel true to the story and to the Abbott family’s inner experiences. “I always knew that by putting the sight of fires in the distance in A Quiet Place , I was hinting that there were other survivors. But I never thought I’d get the opportunity to explore who they were and build out this world. Then, once I started, it all seemed to fall into place organically.” Following the phenomenal popularity of the first film, Krasinski had the audience front of mind when crafting the sequel. “It’s not that I was going to be swayed to compromise anything for the viewers, it’s more that I felt beholden to make a movie that deserved the level of respect they had already given to us,” he explains. “I really wanted this

Place took this simple premise and transformed it into a tense and terrifying exercise in sustained suspense, focusing on a family who have managed to survive by creating a silent sanctuary in a secluded farmhouse. “Initially, I had no intention of doing a sequel to the film,” says John Krasinski. “The story was never designed to be a franchise. But the power of the world we created became the draw to delve into it further, to see where it might lead the Abbotts as a family.” A Quiet Place Part II , like all good sequels, plays as a direct continuation of the story, picking up the action mere seconds after the conclusion of the first film and then expanding upon the established milieu and its rules, as the Abbott family leave their rural refuge for the big, wide, post-apocalyptic world in search of other survivors. “That felt like an unbelievable way to continue this story,” says producer Andrew Form. “You have a mom, a tiny baby and two children – and for the first time they have to leave this protective world that Lee created to keep his family safe.” The most important aspect for Krasinski was that the sequel echo its predecessor as a visceral, sensory experience while advancing the Abbott family’s emotional journey. “After the success of A Quiet Place , I

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movie to say to our audience, ‘Thank you for going along with us on this intimate journey, and now we’ll continue that journey for you.’” He was also thrilled to return to familiar ground with the Abbott family and further shake up their world, pushing them to the next edge and watching the characters rise to the challenge. “The first film was just a small slice of what's possible in this world,” says Krasinski. “This chapter has everything you loved about the first one, but every step that Evelyn [Emily Blunt] and her children take is new to them, new to us, and that

knew there would be interest in another one, but I wanted no part of something that had the wrong intentions or didn’t feel organic. So, I was OK with another writer and director taking over. And yet, I had the beginnings of an idea in my head,” recalls Krasinski.

much more treacherous. The Abbotts have lost all their tricks for staying alive that were at the center of the first story, and for the first time since this started, they have to rely on others. It’s an even scarier time in their lives, but it’s an exhilarating journey.”

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12 AUGUST 2021

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