Lupita Nyong’o and Joseph Quinn (Eddie from Stranger Things) are on the poster for A Quiet Place: Day One, but that honor should go to Schnitzel and Nico — the cats who play Frodo, the service animal for Nyong’o’s hospice patient Samira.

Folks, this is one incredible kitty. Not only does Frodo remain silent while the deadly, hyper-audio-sensitive alien invaders inflict chaos across Manhattan — this cat can hold its breath for long stretches under water!

Fun as it is to see an extremely cool and talented feline onscreen, this nonsense is merely the latest in the now three-film series’ improbable details that, along with the evil E.T.s’ inconsistent behavior, hamper an otherwise engaging conflict.

Atop these issues, it’s also in somewhat bad taste to set A Quiet Place: Day One in New York City. Opening text about the location’s constant decibel level being the same as a human scream provides a haunting introduction, but once the attack commences and the streets and people are covered in ash, one wonders how thoroughly writer/director Michael Sarnoski (Pig) thought out the setting and/or if the 9/11 imagery is intentional.

Though the tale of Samira, law student Eric (Quinn), Frodo, and others attempting to survive these new and confusing adversaries likely could have been just as effective in Chicago, Pittsburgh, or any major city, navigating them in THE city adds a distinct layer of urban intrigue that might not have been as pronounced elsewhere.

The trio’s adventures are nevertheless on par with those in the saga’s previous two films, and there’s little new or different or notes in the alien’s attacks. As such, it’s a sort of twisted comfort food for viewers who’ve been enchanted up to this point and a flawed but lucrative formula that will seemingly be replicated for years to come.

Grade: B-minus. Rated PG-13. Now playing at AMC River Hills 10, Carolina Cinemark, and Regal Biltmore Grande.

(Photo by Gareth Gatrell)