Grade (A)
One of the few sequels that builds off the original, yet still holds some originality of its own.
“THE CONJURING 2” brings Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson back as Lorraine & Ed Warren and the story follows them as they take on a case in London during the late 1970’s. A mother on the verge of poverty discovers her youngest daughter is showing signs of a demonic possession. After making a plea through the news, the Warren’s are compelled by the case and when they decide to take it on, they have no idea how close to death it may bring them.
I loved the first “Conjuring” it was a fresh take on the genre, built a solid story, delivered frightening sequences, with James Wan’s direction being razor sharp. So it was expected this sequel would bring much the same. But as we all know, expectations in Hollywood can often lead to disappointment. However, with this film, that was not the case as once again James Wan brings us a captivating tale of horror in the form of a ‘based on true events’ story.
Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga are once again excellent in their performances and continue to build on their characters. Their strong chemistry is still present, completely selling them as the paranormal investigating couple. Frances O’Connor was also great as the down-on-her-luck mother struggling for answers. She pulled off all the emotional moments and her character was one the audience can easily connect, and sympathize with.
Again, in a film like this the child actors are vital to its success and they were a strong suit in this movie. Madison Wolfe, the young girl with the case of possession was fantastic, she pulled off the role in convincing style and despite all the chances of possible overacting, she was on point. She never felt like she was trying too hard, and really felt the part she was playing.
The story was also solid, long-winded, but still very captivating. There was not a loss for detail in this script as through much of the first-act the story covers the hardships of the presence in the families home and develops their characters. It felt a little on the long side but it did do a solid job of conveying the dangers they were facing long before the Warren’s come into the picture. The story-line creates many frightening moments and in true Wan fashion, the jumps are legitimate with many creepy and sinister scenes and visuals. The quality of the writing, story direction, and performances do a perfect job of building tension throughout, much like the first film.
On the downside the run-time was on the long side, being over two-hours but luckily with the quality of everything it does a pretty good job of holding the viewers attention without too much fatigue. The camerawork, musical score and direction are all great once again and make this film easily able to add to the small group of truly great sequels out there. “The Conjuring 2” shows great effort, clearly was not trying to cash in on the success of the original, and is highly recommended.
Time: 134 min
MPAA Rating: R (For terror and horror violence)