The Conjuring 2: Just Another Cliché Halloween Thriller?

By Shrey Sankalp

I have an interesting – if thoroughly outlandish – thought:

Horror movies and love are suspiciously alike.

Sure, only one of them employs over-the-top horror costumes and excessive make-up (or does it?) but in case of both commodities, we’re constantly searching for a profound experience, only to be met with the same old wine in a not altogether different bottle.

Of course, there’s always an exception, that despite being familiar, plays to all our expectations and even subverts a few of them, leaving us reasonably entertained and maybe even a bit scared.

What does any of that have to do with The Conjuring 2?

Everything, because it’s – somewhat frustratingly – stuck between the two.

I’m quite frankly surprised at the overwhelming critical response the film has been getting so far, because while there’s nothing here that’s bad at all, everything is just so clichéd, and I’m left wondering if some rose tinted glasses are not involved on the part of the critics.

Image Source: horror.wikia.com

James Wan is a gifted writer and a gifted director, I just wish it had shown more in the film than it did.

I don’t have to tell you that horror has become a genre that seems to have been sucked of all its creative life force as the industry just aims to create the next clichéd Halloween thriller – in the last few years (or decades, really) nearly everything that could have been done or shown has been done or shown, and to me that was most apparent during this film.   Keeping in mind that The Conjuring 2 was supposed to be released for Halloween 2015, it is not surprising that the movie was intended to touch on the old elements of a Halloween thriller.  Had it been released by its original projected date, there may have been a bit more relevance and appeal for the movie, at least as an inspiration for Halloween costumes.   Instead, the release was pushed back and we were left with a ‘been there, done that’ reaction to film.

The Conjuring (part one) didn’t tell a new or unique story either; it was the usual haunted house scare fest with eerie costumes and glum set.   But director James Wan brought an old school approach to the horror that for some reason really worked, both critically and commercially, and the adulation received by the film ensured it would get a sequel.   While a disappointing spinoff (we’re talking about Annabelle here) made sure our expectations were kept in check, the marketing for the sequel hinted at a satisfactorily creepy and inventive follow up that would significantly affect the horror genre and elevate it above something akin to a feature length reel for potential Halloween costumes.  

Unfortunately, for me, the film falls quite a bit short, and I’m inclined to say they are more the limitations of the genre than the film’s shortcomings, but we’ll get to that in a minute.

The film is supposedly a true story, dealing with the very well documented Enfield hauntings taking place in 1970s London where a family – the Hodgsons – are tormented by an entity (or so they claim) and our demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren are out to investigate the matter and attest to its veracity.  

I won’t go into further details so as to not spoil too much, but as I said, it’s very well documented and you can find out all about it on the internet (read this brief summary of the events at I Love Halloween ).

Of course, I should let you know that just as any Halloween mongering thriller, the film is heavily, heavily fictionalized with everything greatly exaggerated, from the Warren’s involvement (they had barely a fraction of the role in real life) to the authenticity of the story itself, which has since been established as a faking in numerous instances by the Hodgson sisters.

But hey, it’s like Steve Buscemi said on Boardwalk Empire, never let the truth get in the way of a good story.   We wouldn’t have the Halloween costume industry if we weren’t for over-the-top creativity, so I am willing to accept it at some level.   And honestly it’s fine if the movie is taking creative liberties, the first Conjuring did it and even a biopic like Steve Jobs did it, and they both turned out okay, didn’t they?

Besides, saying you go to a horror movie for the plot or the authenticity is like saying you go to McDonald’s because their lighting attracts you.

The Conjuring 2 does nothing to reinvent the formula, and essentially gives you the same creepy haunted house tale where a family is tormented by an entity (that at least has a really cool costume that will be ripped off this Halloween blatantly) by the usual door banging, thing shifting and general pushing and shoving (seriously, ghosts need to learn some new tricks) until the good guys come and send it straight to hell.

I’m willing to forgive that if there’s some genuine innovation at play, but there’s really not.

James Wan is a competent director, and a few questionable musical choices aside, he sets the tone of the film well enough, with lingering shots, deliberate lack of focus, and smooth pans along with an ominous score that’s muted right before the big scare and all that’s fine, but with the first Conjuring, he took a less is more approach that allowed the tension to build fantastically until your heart was ready to stop beating (remember the unparalleled hide and clap sequence in the first film?) and with this film, that approach seems to have taken a back seat.

There are plenty of jump scares, but for most of the time, audiences were laughing at it when they should have been terrified, and that to me, is a bit of a miss for a film that was supposed to be released on HALLOWEEN!

Image Source: movienewsguide.com

Oh hey, it’s Marilyn Manson! Somebody play “Personal Jesus” in the background, please.

Similarly, this bombastic all-out-scares approach might be effective, but it’s not potent.

There’s a debate going on throughout the film about whether what’s happening in the film is reality or fiction, and there’s a fantastic story in there, but instead of choosing to go that way along with covert and understated scares that build tension and generate psychological horror, Wan chose instead the CGI fakery and the Demonic Nun—that looks like a cross between Marilyn Manson and Jared Leto’s Joker, by the way, so if you can’t find the Demonic Nun costume, a slightly tweaked Manson or Joker costume would do the job too— bombast, and I just wonder if he’s in his blockbuster Furious 7/Aquaman mode than his Saw/Insidious mode.

There’s a moment towards the end—that is perfect for a Halloween thriller—right before the climax that was a genuine twist most people may not have seen coming, but once again, a tighter edit with a greater focus on the psychological side of things would have really elevated the whole thing to another level.

These are ultimately limitations of the sandbox that the film is playing in, but films like Sinister, The Babadook and It Follows (or even Lights Out whose trailer was shown before the film began, it seemed really creative) have shown us how things can still be shaken up.   And while I wasn’t expecting this film to be on par with The Omen, The Exorcist, The Shining or even the first Conjuring, I’d have liked if it was on par with the former films, and as of now, it fell slightly short, even when it brought the scares.

Plus, it doesn’t help that the film is 135 minutes long.   The parallel plot with the Warrens in the beginning could have easily been excised with some of the film reworked to cut down about half an hour and made the whole thing more tight and relentless.

Image Source: Nerdist.com

Patrick Wilson truly impressed me in this film with the warm, affable quality he brought to his character.

And that’s really my only issue here.  The film is extremely competent from a purely technical standpoint and knows what it’s trying to be, thus able to present a clear story.  It is effective in the scares department, the aesthetic is a goldmine for Halloween props and costumes and Wan’s characterization of the family and the Warrens (Patrick Wilson is especially fantastic, continuing the streak he began with Fargo) is sympathetic, but the one issue I talk about detracts from all of that for me.

Maybe this is something that’s an issue for me but won’t be one for you, in which case, go ahead and purchase your tickets by all means, but I can’t help but lament the loss of a truly great opportunity here.

I’d love to see another Conjuring film (which I’m certain will come to pass) because I like this universe, but I’d really like some innovation and not a reliance on every cliché in the book.

Here’s hoping.

Oh, shameless plug-in:  Please make sure to check out our Halloween collection, you may just find a costume there to portray the creepy Marilyn Manson looking nun or some other Halloween horror film cliché.