SPOILER-FREE MOVIE REVIEW
I still can't believe I actually mustered up the courage to accept my friend's offer to go watch a horror movie.
I am not a fan of these movies, not in the slightest.
It's like roller coasters for me - why would you want to pay somebody to scare the living shit out of you?
However, I thought to myself - as someone who loves movies with great passion, I should broaden my range in order to be a more credible movie buff.
Also, sorry this review took so long to be posted. I watched this movie last month during my holidays in a week which saw me watch something like 5 or 6 movies in the space of 4-5 days. That was an awesome week.
So, without further ado, here's my review of The Conjuring 2.
This is only the second horror movie I have ever watched (unless Scary Movie 3 is counted haha), with my first being the first Conjuring movie which freaked me out so much.
In this sequel, paranormal investigators Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) return for an even bigger case - this time, in good ol' England.
I was actually really pleasantly surprised with this movie.
From the start, there was already something present that I had never expected in a typical horror movie - a story.
I know you may be thinking, who am I to say that horror films in general have no story and that jump scares and freaky shit are just scattered everywhere just for the sake of scaring the viewers right?
That's why I asked my friends what they thought of it, and they all drew the same conclusions - that it is actually rare for a horror movie to have a compelling story.
The story actually made the movie very interesting for me, and it wasn't just a story regarding the freaky demon that the movie is built around, but a genuine and heartfelt story about love, family, and courage. It was even funny at times! How often can you say that about a horror film.
The romance aspect in particular truly stood out as it picked up where the first Conjuring movie left off, and completely upped the focus and authenticity of the daily struggles of married couples, not to mention that this is no ordinary married couple (both of them deal with supernatural beings, man. That ain't normal at all).
It's a very genuine struggle and it was lovely to see all the complications that arise with that on screen.
I also really liked the characters in the movie, especially the young girl who gets possessed, Janet (Madison Wolfe).
Her character was so interesting as she was such an innocent little girl who was just curious, and to see how the demons took over her was truly and deeply scary as shit.
I also have to commend the performance by young Madison Wolfe. She was truly outstanding.
See the difference between The Conjuring 2 and the typical Hollywood horror flick? The scary bits aren't the focus of the film, and that makes the scary bits even scarier as you don't expect them to come at all. It's brilliant, truly class filmmaking by part-Singaporean (WEW) director James Wan.
What was also brilliant was the camera work.
James Wan and his cinematographer Don Burgess employed the use of the one-continuous-take technique for much of the film to spectacular effect.
Although this technique is pretty common in mainstream films ever since Birdman totally slayed the technique so brilliantly in 2014, it just worked so well with The Conjuring 2.
Instead of using jump-cuts or shaky cam to create tension, the duo used these long takes to build the suspense as they moved from corridor to corridor at such an agonisingly slow pace, and when you least expect it, BAM, you're dead from witnessing the jump scare of your life (I'm exaggerating, duh).
An excellent way to use the technique. Huge plaudits to James Wan and Don Burgess for that.
What actually makes this movie scarier is that it's based on true events, and like the actual recordings of the demon speaking through the real girl was actually played over the end credits. EVEN THE END CREDITS WERE SCARY MAN.
Were there any flaws with the film, well, not really.
I couldn't find any faults with the movie. Legit, man. It was made very well.
Oh and I really liked the choice of music they used for the film. There was a nice variety of classics from the era like "London Calling" by The Clash, as well as classics like "Can't Help Falling In Love" by Elvis Presley.
The use of the latter made me fall in love with the song all over again. Believe it or not, I was even singing along in the cinema haha.
There was also this song called "I Started A Joke" by the Bee Gees which was incorporated so seamlessly and ingeniously into the soundtrack at one point in the film. Talk about the perfect song for the perfect scene, man. This was definitely it.
All in all, The Conjuring 2 was so much more than your typical Hollywood horror movie.
It had the depth in story and character that you'd only find in a quality drama, along with with top quality scary shit which left me paranoid for like 15 minutes after the movie had already ended.
It's directed brilliantly, shot supremely and it was, even for me, a very enjoyable movie.
Catch it in cinemas before it finishes its run!
8/10.
I am not a fan of these movies, not in the slightest.
It's like roller coasters for me - why would you want to pay somebody to scare the living shit out of you?
However, I thought to myself - as someone who loves movies with great passion, I should broaden my range in order to be a more credible movie buff.
Also, sorry this review took so long to be posted. I watched this movie last month during my holidays in a week which saw me watch something like 5 or 6 movies in the space of 4-5 days. That was an awesome week.
So, without further ado, here's my review of The Conjuring 2.
This is only the second horror movie I have ever watched (unless Scary Movie 3 is counted haha), with my first being the first Conjuring movie which freaked me out so much.
In this sequel, paranormal investigators Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) return for an even bigger case - this time, in good ol' England.
I was actually really pleasantly surprised with this movie.
From the start, there was already something present that I had never expected in a typical horror movie - a story.
I know you may be thinking, who am I to say that horror films in general have no story and that jump scares and freaky shit are just scattered everywhere just for the sake of scaring the viewers right?
That's why I asked my friends what they thought of it, and they all drew the same conclusions - that it is actually rare for a horror movie to have a compelling story.
The story actually made the movie very interesting for me, and it wasn't just a story regarding the freaky demon that the movie is built around, but a genuine and heartfelt story about love, family, and courage. It was even funny at times! How often can you say that about a horror film.
The romance aspect in particular truly stood out as it picked up where the first Conjuring movie left off, and completely upped the focus and authenticity of the daily struggles of married couples, not to mention that this is no ordinary married couple (both of them deal with supernatural beings, man. That ain't normal at all).
It's a very genuine struggle and it was lovely to see all the complications that arise with that on screen.
I also really liked the characters in the movie, especially the young girl who gets possessed, Janet (Madison Wolfe).
Her character was so interesting as she was such an innocent little girl who was just curious, and to see how the demons took over her was truly and deeply scary as shit.
I also have to commend the performance by young Madison Wolfe. She was truly outstanding.
See the difference between The Conjuring 2 and the typical Hollywood horror flick? The scary bits aren't the focus of the film, and that makes the scary bits even scarier as you don't expect them to come at all. It's brilliant, truly class filmmaking by part-Singaporean (WEW) director James Wan.
What was also brilliant was the camera work.
James Wan and his cinematographer Don Burgess employed the use of the one-continuous-take technique for much of the film to spectacular effect.
Although this technique is pretty common in mainstream films ever since Birdman totally slayed the technique so brilliantly in 2014, it just worked so well with The Conjuring 2.
Instead of using jump-cuts or shaky cam to create tension, the duo used these long takes to build the suspense as they moved from corridor to corridor at such an agonisingly slow pace, and when you least expect it, BAM, you're dead from witnessing the jump scare of your life (I'm exaggerating, duh).
An excellent way to use the technique. Huge plaudits to James Wan and Don Burgess for that.
What actually makes this movie scarier is that it's based on true events, and like the actual recordings of the demon speaking through the real girl was actually played over the end credits. EVEN THE END CREDITS WERE SCARY MAN.
Were there any flaws with the film, well, not really.
I couldn't find any faults with the movie. Legit, man. It was made very well.
Oh and I really liked the choice of music they used for the film. There was a nice variety of classics from the era like "London Calling" by The Clash, as well as classics like "Can't Help Falling In Love" by Elvis Presley.
The use of the latter made me fall in love with the song all over again. Believe it or not, I was even singing along in the cinema haha.
There was also this song called "I Started A Joke" by the Bee Gees which was incorporated so seamlessly and ingeniously into the soundtrack at one point in the film. Talk about the perfect song for the perfect scene, man. This was definitely it.
All in all, The Conjuring 2 was so much more than your typical Hollywood horror movie.
It had the depth in story and character that you'd only find in a quality drama, along with with top quality scary shit which left me paranoid for like 15 minutes after the movie had already ended.
It's directed brilliantly, shot supremely and it was, even for me, a very enjoyable movie.
Catch it in cinemas before it finishes its run!
8/10.
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