The Conjuring 2
Rating: 5/5
By: Nathaniel Simpson
James Wan's The Conjuring has become a horror classic over the last few years, with many people considering it one of the best horror movies of all time. He simply struck gold with the cast, the plot and subject matter, the effective scares, and the use of atmospheric horror, terrifying audiences and presenting new horror icons and legends. Therefore, for his second entry into the franchise, especially after the not-so-great Annabelle, Wan has to up the scares and the stakes compared to the first movie to make this one succeed. Thankfully, he outdoes himself with this second Warren case, presenting perhaps one of the scariest modern horror films that will leave the viewers with more nightmares compared to the first film.
In this film, we find the Warrens (Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga) travel to Enfield, a little borough in north London, to help a family with a demonic spirit that resides in their small home. The overwhelmed single mother Peggy Hodgson (Frances O'Connor) informs the Warrens of a malevolent spirit that is haunting their home, and especially targeting one of her daughters, Janet (Madison Wolfe). When they start to investigate and find that Janet might be possessed by the demonic spirit, the Warrens must stop at nothing to free this family from the spirit, as well as dealing with some personal demons that are following them.
Wan takes the atmospheric horror elements that he utilized so greatly in the first installment of this series, and uses them so well here again. The movie is not set in this dodgy little British house, with older furniture and dark hallways. This totally sets the mood for the whole film and shows where the movie is going to go. He utilizes this terrifying environment to not only build dread in the audience and make them fearful of what is going to happen next, but also to allow more innovative and unexpected jumpscares. One of my favorite jumpscares comes when they are communicating with the spirit of Bill Wilkins (Bob Adrian) and he suddenly appears behind one of the little girls next to his beloved chair. It startles you so well and makes your heart beat out of your chest. I'm like a broken record when describing Wan because he is truly a master of horror and knows exactly how to get a reaction out of the audience.
What I also enjoy an immense amount in this film is the numerous use of demonic spirits Wan incorporates. The first movie only had one major spirit that was haunting the family, while we have a couple here that haunt both the family and the Warrants. We have the terrifying Nun Valak (Bonnie Aarons), who is genuinely perhaps the most terrifying spirit in the whole Conjuring series. Aarons really is terrifying and knows how to be incredibly subtle about it. She is definitely nightmare fuel, and will haunt your dreams. We also have The Crooked Man, who is also terrifying in his own right and makes the viewer squirm in their seat when he starts to grow and rush the camera. Wilkins isn't rather scary, but one of those evil characters that just makes you sick to your stomach. They are all utilized so well and are easily able to scare the crap out of anyone watching. They certainly made me squirm in my seat and cover my eyes at times.
The story moves at a very nice pace, and it really allows the entire runtime to set up this story, the malevolent spirits, and the human characters that you are rooting for. I mentioned in my review for the first film that I wish they spent a little more time with character development, but I think this movie did it perfectly and gave us a reason for us to root for these characters. This felt like a more character-driven story, rather than just relying on scares.
The acting is great from everyone here. Farmiga and Wilson are again wonderful as the Warrens, and I really think Farmiga carries these films numerous times. She is wonderful as Lorraine, and Wilson is so fun and enjoyable as Ed. I really like the family here too, and it shows a struggling family who are already on the brink of being overwhelmed having to now deal with a demonic possession. The entire cast that plays the family does a wonderful job of really immersing themselves into these roles and convincing the audience of this low-class British family. And, like I have been saying throughout this whole review, the actors who play the spirits do a fantastic job.
It was probably incredibly hard for Wan to make a successful, and dare I say better, follow-up to his already fantastic horror film, but he somehow does it. This movie works on every level, and I honestly don't know why this movie doesn't have as much attention as the first film. Wan crafts these movies with such care that you can feel how genuine and taken care of these movies are. They're not only terrifying, but very enjoyable and a quite pleasant watch.
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