The Conjuring review
After delivering a massive hit with 2010’s Insidious, James Wan launched an even bigger franchise three years later. The Conjuring turns ten today. A look back at the first installment of a multi-billion dollar universe.
Classic movie reviews will contain spoilers.
The Conjuring
Directed by James Wan
Written by Chad Hayes and Carey W. Hayes
Starring Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ron Livingston and Lili Taylor
The Conjuring Review
If James Wan struck gold with Insidious in 2010…he hit diamond three years later with The Conjuring. Both launched successful franchises. The Conjuring is the most financially successful horror franchise of all time, raking in over 2 billion dollars at the box office. So far. With The Nun II set to hit theaters this September, and The Conjuring: Last Rites coming next year, the series shows no signs of slowing down. It’s been a successful decade for The Conjuring Universe.
A sprawling franchise was clearly on the mind right from the start of the original movie. It opens with an extended opening centered around Anabelle, a cursed doll that would spawn its own trilogy of films. The Conjuring 2 would have its own series spinoff with The Nun. The Curse of La Llorona also popped into the mix for some reason. All told there have been eight installments of The Conjuring Universe released to date. But it all started in 2013 with the first appearance of Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren.
Great actors can elevate any movie. Wilson and Farmiga are excellent. They’re joined here by the also excellent Lili Taylor as the matriarch of the Perron family who find themselves in need of the Warrens’ specific services. A great group of child actors help bring the spookiness to life in the early going. What starts as a haunted house movie eventually gives way to a story of possession…allowing Taylor to flex her considerable range and talent.
The setting also does some heavy lifting. The Conjuring gives us an excellent location. Its big old farmhouse with long corridors and a creepy basement makes a perfect place for a horror movie. The story is set in the early 70’s and the film adapts a perfectly matching aesthetic. The combination of look and feel helps The Conjuring stand out from the 2013 pack.
Wan’s own Insidious presented a patient style that stood in contrast to the remake era that preceded 2010. By 2013 the remake era was rapping up (Evil Dead…arguably the best of the bunch was released the same year. As was the much worse Carrie remake) and the market was loaded with sequels (Hatchet III, V/H/S/2, Curse of Chucky, Texas Chainsaw 3D among others). What new horror we did get (World War Z, You’re Next, Willow Creek) ranged from decent to great but failed to inspire a style that would become commonplace. Wan’s patient style would.
The Conjuring begins as a haunted house story. This is when Wan’s style is at its best. Slow, patient, spooky nights where something may be behind the door. It’s as effective today as it was in 2013. The family dynamic brightens the days and makes the things that go bump in the night even more terrifying. Desperate to understand what is happening they turn to Ed and Lorraine Warren who believe their house needs an exorcism. It’s a great concept that doesn’t really lead to anything as Lili Taylor’s character will end up being the person possessed by the end of the film. Like Insidious before it, the entity is attached to the family not the location.
In addition to the fine story, The Conjuring also gives us some great horror tricks. The most memorable is the clap game. Presented as a children’s game where a blindfolded person tries to find someone by asking for three claps. It’s a remarkably dangerous game for people to play given all the things one can bump into. Not to mention playing it on the second floor of a house. Those dangers pale in comparison to what the clap game scenes give us. The hands of a ghost emerging from a closet to clap along…those hands returning to clap behind Taylor’s character as she lights matches at the top of a dark basement.
That sequence comprised the trailer at the bottom of this article. It was so strong they hung the marketing on it. The box office returns speak for themselves. Another trick the movie uses (a music box with a mirror that will show you a ghost standing behind you) was the payoff to another trailer. Marketing knew that they had something special in The Conjuring and its success and longevity proved them right.
Ten years after its release, The Conjuring remains relevant due to not only the continuation of the universe it spawned, but the quality of the film itself. A great cast and some new tricks played with a classic feel and a patient approach. A wild success in every way, the first Conjuring stands as the best one.
Scare Value
The Conjuring Universe has proved to be a massive success with the next installment due out this September (The Nun II). The Conjuring stands alone as the best film of the growing franchise. Wan is in top form, bringing his Patient Horror style to a period piece haunted house story. An excellent cast brings his world to life and Wilson and Farmiga leave you wanting to see more. Which is a large part of why this universe continues to expand.
4.5/5
The Conjuring Links
Streaming on Max
Rent/Buy on VOD from Vudu and Amazon
Buy on Blu-Ray from Amazon
The Conjuring Trailer
If you enjoyed this review of The Conjuring, check out other classic movie reviews: Disturbing Behavior, Cujo, You’re Next and The Howling
