I will start this by saying that I enjoyed the first Conjuring. It should be taken with a grain of salt, though. It was a decent horror film that ended up switching tones and going for the ultimate in chaotic once the third act came around. Director James Wan said it was his last horror film, but ultimately he could not stay away and returned for this summer's sequel. If what we have been given in 2016 in the way of sequels is a trend, it would be believed that The Conjuring 2 would be without soul and just a reason to put out a film with a recognizable name.
Luckily, however, there is plenty of heart and soul to be found in this paranormal caper. It follows the ghost investigating husband and wife team of Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) as they come off the case of the Amityville haunting. This is based off of actual people, and there was an actual Amityville case, but, truth be told, it was one giant hoax. That doesn't stop it, and the fictional house that symbolized it in the 1977 film, from being used in cinematic tales of ghosts to this day. After investigating the case at Amityville they decide to hang up the gloves, only to be drawn in one last time, heading to London to deal with a family that has been tormented by an evil spirit.
Wilson and Farmiga reprise their roles in terrific fashion, with a true chemistry between the two. In a way, this is a story about their love for each other as much as it is about the case of the haunted house. We get enough back story into their relationship to understand both their caring and concerns for each other. Solid relationships that the audience can believe in are paramount to every film, and The Conjuring 2 manages to pull this one off.
Knowing the current state of haunted house horror films, it is easy to go into this movie and believe that everything will be solely about the jump scares. The first Conjuring laid heavy on them, but Wan showed a crafty ability to keep them from being too predictable. This time around they are a little easier to anticipate, but there is a greater detail paid to the atmosphere and the story.
The first half of the film builds on the tension of these jump scares that the Hodgson family is dealing with. Poor folks can't get a decent night's sleep without jumping at a scare. There were audience members who were jumping as well, but, as mentioned, they were easily spotted. Once the movie entered the halfway mark, it was less about this and more about the narrative, turning it from a startling horror into more of a thriller. In a number of ways, this format was similar to Insidious Chapter 3, which turned out to be a very fun ride.
Paying more attention to the characters and the story elevates The Conjuring 2 above what my expectations were. We are treated to a well cast company of actors, anchored by the young Madison Wolfe who plays a child who is most afflicted by the paranormal baddy. There are four people with screenplay credits, which can usually mean a film feels disjointed along the way. Not so here, as it is competent for being a summer horror film.
Keeping it from being great is the aforementioned predictability of the scares. But for those who have not seen nearly as many horror films as I, it should still prove to be frightful. The characters are great, the relationships are believable, and Wan shows his slickness with the camera attention to set details. There are so many failed sequels this year, but The Conjuring 2 does not rank among them.
Rating - 3 out of 4 stars
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