serendipity163

Sequels can be hit and miss. Some can be pretty good, albeit with some flaws, and others can be terrible and completely disrespect the quality of the original film. But on rare occasions, a perfect sequel is made; a film so good that it matches or even surpasses the original. The Godfather Part II, The Dark Knight and Shrek 2 were perfect sequels, and A Quiet Place Part II has joined that standard.

John Krasinski has written and directed an excellent film. With this sequel, he masterfully expanded the world but kept the story character-focused, ensuring that the audience remained emotionally engaged throughout. It was brilliantly edited (massive credit to the editor, Michael P. Shawver) - the sequences showing the parallel difficulties of the characters were very effective in building suspense and emotion. The acting was sublime. Emily Blunt is a powerhouse and Noah Jupe is awesome, I loved their mother/son scenes together. Cillian Murphy once again proves that he is a gem that excels in every role he's given, but it is Millicent Simmonds who shines the brightest.

It was great watching this in the cinema after such a long hiatus. A sequel like this was made to be experienced on the big screen, and I'm so glad Krasinski and Paramount made the decision to wait and not release this film digitally. The audience was completely enraptured, and the whole theatre was indeed a quiet place! A true theatrical delight, bring on Part 3!!

Once again, This Is Us delivers a truly stunning episode. The writing, direction, acting, music...everything was just so powerful. I also greatly appreciated the nuances of black culture which are so familiar to me (sitting in the kitchen getting your hair pressed with a hot comb). The closure that this episode gave Randall was beautiful, as he was able to truly know that he was loved by the people who raised him AND by the people who made him. What a beautiful journey.

I love TIU but I got used to thinking that there was never going to be another episode as amazing as 'Memphis' back in Season 1...well I was wrong. 'Birth Mother' can join 'Memphis' in being not just the greatest TIU episodes, but also one of the greatest television episodes period.