For a long time now, horror movies have not been perceived as "scary." At most, horror movies are mildly frightening, sometimes almost excruciatingly comical. I am with the vast majority of people who love horror films, but agree that they are never scary enough to frighten me. Suddenly, this past weekend, everything changed. "The Conjuring 2" was released on June 10, 2016, and you can guarantee I was there to watch the movie on opening night.
James Wan, a Malaysian-born Australian director, is the genius behind this masterpiece. He is severely underrated for most of his worksand not properly awarded credit. James Wan has directed other notorious films, such as the "Saw" series, the "Insidious" series, and "Furious 7." In my opinion, he is one of the few directors who understand the concept of "horror films."
Contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary to see "The Conjuring" before watching "The Conjuring 2." Watching the first movie before going to see its sequel will only aid in comparing the two movies afterward. Similar to the first movie, notable actors Patrick Wilson and Vera Ann Farmiga reprise their roles as Ed and Lorraine Warren, who were real-life paranormal investigators. "The Conjuring 2" is based on a true story and focuses around the actual events that occured in the case of the Enfield Poltergeist.
The movie takes place in 1977, when Ed and Lorraine Warren travel to London, England to investigate the claims of paranormal activity. Upon arrival to the "haunted" house, Ed and Lorraine Warren discover Peggy Hodgson, a single mother living with her four children: Margaret, Janet, Johnny, and Billy. The movie begins with a brief look at the events of The Amityville Horror, the Warrens' most notable and documented case. These events are intertwined with the events of the Enfield Poltergeist.
The viewer immediately realizes that Janet Hodgson has become a victim to demonic possession when strange occurrences happen. Randomly, Janet starts to "sleepwalk" (or this is how she describes it to her mother) and she speaks to spirits in her sleep. Her sister, Margaret, doesn't understand and can't see whom it is she is speaking to, so she attributes these happenings to nightmares. Billy, the youngest Hodgson child who suffers with severe stuttering, has his own encounters with the paranormal and has difficulty communicating this to his mother. It isn't until Peggy Hodgson witnesses these occurrences herself and decides that there is actually something strange happening.
The paranormal activity occurred for months before Ed and Lorraine Warren were summoned for their services. The Catholic church had its reservations with becoming involved, for fear that this situation could be another hoax. Initially, Lorraine had her own reservations with taking on the case after having a frightening premonition regarding her husband; however, the couple decided to take the case anyways. As predicted, Ed and Lorraine did everything in their power to communicate with the demon and understand its reasoning for selecting this family as its victims.
Aside from the movie itself, the background music played a significant part in adding to the movie's overall horror aspect. I jumped out of fear a total of two times and experienced an innumerable amount of laughs. The acting also made the movie a success, especially that of Madison Wolfe, the young actress who portrayed Janet Hodgson. As expected, Patrick Wilson and Vera Ann Farmiga did another superb job when portraying Ed and Lorraine Warren.
Overall, I have no complaints about the movie. This is the first movie I would probably rate five stars. If you have not yet seen "The Conjuring 2," you should probably be making plans now to purchase tickets and enjoy a night out at the movie theater.
