Now Evelyn (Emily Blunt) is pregnant and almost due so the family are preparing to bunker down in the basement for the birth. However a few misfortunes and a little teenage rebellion from daughter Regan (Millicent Simmons) mean they're about to have a bad night of it.
The little monster movie that could, made for very little this was a big smash.
If you superficially analyse it nothing here looks special. There are a series of set pieces with characters in peril, some fairly generic monsters and a kind of bullshit escape from certain death plot device at the end.
However something about it just clicks with the ever dependable Emily Blunt and Millicent Simmons carrying a lot of the weight.
There is almost no spoken dialogue with most lines delivered in ASL but even that (available in subtitles) is sparse and often functional. Stripped of exposition the way the family live and relate is played out physically. Hopscotching on painted floorboards that don't creak, laying down sound deadening ash to walk on, no doors to slam, eating with fingers, bare feet. It's all very tactile and expresses story through purposeful quiet activity. This makes it very much about the family relations and not fighting the monsters.
Highly recommended 9/10, I've no idea if they'll capture lightning again in the sequel.