The Conjuring 2 (2016)

The Conjuring 2 is simultaneously one of the most unnerving and unintentional hilarious horror movies I have ever seen.  It is based off the “true story” of the Enfield Poltergeist that reportedly harassed an English family (The Hodgsons) from 1977 to 1979. The popular consensus is that the whole thing was a hoax (though there are a few brave souls that believe it is genuine).  In real life, the Warrens’ involvement in the case was a fairly minimal, but in the movie they are unshakeable bad asses who successfully vanquish the foul demon that is behind the haunting (this is not an exaggeration). It is a tale of two halves – the first half of the movie, dealing with the Hodgsons experience with the Poltergeist is extremely tense and frightening. The second half, when the Warrens arrive on the scene, gets progressively more absurd and nearly devolves into self parody.  

In the first half, director James Wan does a nice job of establishing ominous presence through simple cinematic tricks. There is a scene that recalls Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby – the youngest son, Billy, nearly trips on a toy fire truck and, out of a frustration kicks into a makeshift tent that he has set up at the end of the hallway.  He then walks into his bedroom, while the tent is framed through the doorway, thus signaling to the audience that something scary is about to happen.  After hesitating, Billy crawls into his bed and, once the tent is no longer visible in frame, an off screen force kicks the fire truck into Billy’s room. It’s masterful job of utilizing the frame without resorting to a cheap jump scare, or silly CGI. It is a technical well done movie, but what really sells it is Madison Wolfe’s appealing performance as Janet Hodgson. It easy to root for the wide eyed, and frail, Janet and it is extremely unpleasant to see the punishment she endures at the hands of the demon. 

The second half, however, takes a turn for the worse once the Warrens arrive on the scene. The movie’s portrayal of the Warrens is a bit over the top – they are absolute saints endowed with Marvel – like super powers. Ed Warren is not only a ghost hunter, but he is also a handyman (he fixes the Hodgson’s plumbing) and serenades the family with the Elvis classic, “I Can’t Help Falling in Love With You."  Lorraine maybe a psychic, but she is also a super compassionate human being – she takes time from her busy schedule to give Janet a few words of encouragement. The Warrens dominate the second half, which is unfortunate, because the plight of the family is far more interesting. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga are good enough actors to make it work, but the script often lets them down.  The real life Warrens, of course, were nothing like their cinematic counterparts – they were con artists always in search of a quick buck. I urge you to check out to Steven Novella’s hilarious account on meeting the Warrens and just how clueless they truly were. 

The other unfortunate trend of this movie is to paint skeptics as obnoxious bullies – early in the movie there is a scene where Ed gets into a shouting match with Stephen Kaplan on a talk show.  Kaplan is depicted as being a belligerent jackass unwillingly to listen to reason. Interestingly, while the Warrens did have a few run-ins with Dr. Kaplan, this dialogue in this scene is based off an exchange Ed Warren had with noted skeptic, Joe Nickell, on the Sally Jessie Raphael show.  Also, I might add that Stephen Kaplan was a firm believer in the paranormal, but was convinced the haunting in Amityville was a hoax. The other skeptic in the movie, Anita Gregory (Franka Potente), is not as irritating as Kaplan, but she is just as cold and distant. The Warrens are truly warm and sympathetic individuals who genuinely want to help the family, while Gregory is a complete cynic and is only capable of seeing the worst in people.  I like Franka Potente, but her character is is so one dimensional that even she can’t breathe life into it.  

The opening of the movie, which finds Ed and Lorraine holding a séance at the Amityville house, borders on the tasteless as we are given a graphic recreation of the real life DeFeo murders.  The movie doesn’t imply, but blatantly states that Ronald “Butch” DeFeo, Jr. was under demonic influence when he murdered his family – as opposed to being a sociopath under the influence of drugs.  It is a bit queasy to see Wan exploit a real life tragedy to set up his mostly fictional movie.  The original Amityville Horror also opens with the murders of the DeFeos, but it is done in a far more tasteful manner, despite being an exploitation movie; it gives the audiences a few flashes of the violence, but doesn’t dwell on it. 

The first Conjuring had similar flaws, but at least the dead witch’s motivation made sense – revenge, simple revenge.  The demon’s motivation in The Conjuring 2 is a bit muddled to the point that it rivals that of any James Bond villain. What exactly is its end game? Is it using the Hodgson’s to get to the Warrens? It is implied that the demon is luring Ed to his death. If so, then why does it trick them into leaving the house?  This usually wouldn’t be a big deal, but the demon’s sinister plot is an important part of the movie – it is a point of emphasis in the movie’s last half hour. It also doesn’t help that the demon, a pale faced nun, looks like a castoff from a Marilyn Manson video.  The first Conjuring only gives us a few glimpses of the witch, Bathsheba, while the nun in the sequel is given prominent screen time. 

The Conjuring 2, despite its flaws, is still worth seeing.  James Wan knows how to ratchet up the tension and the acting, overall, is pretty good.  It also helps that if you take its whole “based on a true story” claim with a grain of a salt. In fact, It would be best to think of it as an alternate universe where demonic possession is a real thing and the Warrens are genuine ghost hunters, instead of second rate con artists. 

Credits
Cast: Vera Farmiga (Lorraine Warren), Patrick Wilson (Ed Warren), Madison Wolfe (Janet Hodgson), Frances O’ Connor (Peggy Hodgson), Lauren Esposito (Margaret Hodgson), Simon McBurney (Maurice Grosse), Maria Doyle Kennedy (Peggy Nottingham), Simon Delaney (Vic  Nottingham), Franka Potente (Anita Gregory), Benjamin Haigh (Billy Hodgson), Patrick McAuley(Johnny Hodgson), Bob Adrian (Bill Wilkins), Bonnie Aarons (Demon nun), Robin Atkins Downes (Demon voice), Javier Botet (Crooked Man), Steve Coulter (Father Gordon), Abni Sinha (Harry Whitmark), Chris Royds (Graham Morris), Sterling Jerins (Judy Warren), Daniel Wolfe (Kent Allen), Annie Young (Constable Heeps), Elliot Joseph (Constable Peterson), Cory English (Skeptic Kaplan), Deborah Weston (Talk Show Host).

Director: James Wan
Screenplay: Carey Hayes, Chad Hayes, James Wan, David Leslie Johnson.
Running Time: 133 min.