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2013's acclaimed supernatural chiller "The Conjuring" began with opening onscreen text portending that of the thousands
of cases real-life married paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren
worked on during their careers, one was more malevolent than the rest. With such
a lofty claim made about that picture's story of a 1971 farmhouse haunting in
Harrisville, Rhode Island, one had to wonder if a sequel would live up to its
precursor or be a half-baked redux. Fans needn't have been concerned. Under the
helm of skilled writer-director-fright maker James Wan (2011's "Insidious"),
"The Conjuring 2" comes mighty close to matching the original. In a subgenre
filled to bursting with ghostly specters and demonic entities terrorizing any
number of unsuspecting home owners, Wan and co-writers Carey W. Hayes & Chad
Hayes (2009's "Whiteout") and David Johnson (2012's "Wrath of the Titans") care
about their characters just as much as they do about concocting scares. They
also give their audience the credit so many studio-released horror pictures do
not, allowing scenes to vividly and emotionally play out without feeling the
need to constantly go for obvious jolts. "The Conjuring 2" is classy filmmaking,
trusting that a compellingly foreboding story and genuine craftsmanship can make
a familiar premise fresh again.
A year after Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) were
catapulted to fame following their 1976 investigation into a particularly
infamous murder house in Amityville, New York, the pair are relieved to return
to their suburban home life with daughter Judy (Sterling Jerins). Beset by
visions of Ed's violent death, clairvoyant Lorraine thinks it best to step back
from taking on any new cases. Turning down someone's plea for help is easier
said than done, however, and soon Ed and Lorraine are off to the small North
London burg of Enfield, England, where single mum Peggy Hodgson (Frances
O'Connor) and her four children are being preyed upon by the violent spirit of a
72-year-old man. Hesitant to get involved until the Hodgsons' claims are
substantiated, the local church hopes Ed and Lorraine—as well as researcher
Maurice Grosse (Simon McBurney) and skeptical parapsychologist Anita Gregory (Franka
Potente)—will be able to prove whether or not the case is a hoax. Complicating
matters is Lorraine's difficulty in immediately sensing activity in the house,
even as her intuition suggests Peggy and 11-year-old Janet (Madison Wolfe) are
telling the truth.
"The Conjuring 2" follows a conventional narrative path, but transcends it on
multiple occasions as James Wan unleashes his bag of macabre tricks. Much like
the imperiled Perron clan in "The Conjuring," the Hodgson family are indelibly
observed early on, believable as a tight-knit unit struggling to push forward
after their husband and father abandoned them. When Janet discovers she has
begun sleepwalking at night, she finds it curious, but it is not until she has a
terrifying experience while home alone sick that she realizes someone—or
something—is lurking in her home. As these creepy touches with the other side
escalate amongst the other family members until even the initially disbelieving
Peggy sees it for herself, their first reaction—racing in tandem across the
street to their neighbors' house—earns nervous laughter from its genuineness. It
is nice to see a film of this sort allowing its protagonists to react to
situations in an honest manner, free of the dumb choices and interminable
contempt of frequent horror-movie characters.
Pitch-perfect performances further aid in giving reality to the material. Vera
Farmiga (20109s "Up in the Air") and Patrick Wilson (2009's
The Watchmen)
continue where they left off as Lorraine and Ed Warren, giving a warm, lived-in
vibe to their moments together; indeed, the trust, respect and love they share
consistently shines through. Frances O'Connor (2001's "A.I.:
Artificial Intelligence"), who hasn't been as prolific on the big screen in
recent years, returns with an exquisitely modulated turn as Peggy Hodgson,
fierce in her protectiveness for her children. Above all, it is Madison Wolfe
(2016's "Keanu"), as daughter Janet, who is the picture's most exciting find.
Wolfe's role is demanding in ways that would daunt the most seasoned of adult
actors. She must be petrified and vulnerable yet equipped with inner strength,
instantly sympathetic even as the spirit targets her body as a conduit for its
own malicious doings. No matter what each moment calls for, Wolfe lets go of all
apparent inhibitions and sells it.
"The Conjuring 2" has the goods to give a case of the jitters to just about
anyone, including the not easily rattled. A recurring motif involving a spinning
zoetrope and a gangly-limbed nursery rhyme figure called The Crooked Man builds
deliciously stressful tension, while a hair-raising set-piece set in the Warren
home where Lorraine is stalked by the same demonic nun whose painted likeness
hangs on their office wall is stunningly crafted. The Christmas setting offers
plenty of chances to give seemingly innocuous holiday songs ("Hark the Herald
Angels Sing," for one) an eerie undercurrent. Tag-teaming with 2015's M. Night
Shyamalan-directed "The Visit," the film also proves once and for all that the
elderly can be tremendously scary. Only a few uses of unnecessary CG and a
climactic exposition-heavy exchange remotely threaten to break the spell (they
thankfully don't).
If "The Conjuring 2" works effectively in exactly the way it intends, it
additionally excels in its atmospheric restraint and attention to detail. Wan
understands not every setup has to end with a cheap musical stinger, and not
every scene has to hold the single-minded purpose of spooking. Because caring
about and believing the people on the screen is equally as important, it comes
as an invaluable respite when Wan slows the proceedings down enough to, for
example, observe a sing-along to "Can't Help Falling in Love" led by Ed. By this
point, all involved have earned this shared moment of levity and relief. They
have quite a battle ahead of them.
Audiences expecting a repeat fright-fest might be disappointed in the relative
restraint of “The Conjuring 2,” but this sequel, lesser but not entirely
unequal, has its own goose bumps to raise.
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