The Conjuring (2013)
Starring: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Ron Livingston
Writers: Chad Hayes, Cary Hayes
Director: James Wan
Synopsis:
Based on true events, The Conjuring
tells the thrilling story of ghost hunters Lorraine and Ed Warren who
help a family terrorized by an evil spirit in their mysterious
farmhouse.
Review:
I feel like James Wan is sort of an old
soul, and has finally found his niche when it comes to horror films.
I pretty much enjoy every spectrum of the genre; zombies, slashers,
ghosts, demons, whatever. They can be gory as hell or just nice and
creepy. It's not as easy to find the latter anymore. Maybe once or
twice every few years am I genuinely freaked out by a horror film.
The Conjuring is one of the first in a while that had me chilled
to the bone. Had me looking over my shoulder. Had me requesting to my
girlfriend that we take a break at the halfway mark. I needed to
recollect myself and have another cold beer.
The first act is, just as I said,
freaky as hell. The second act doesn't really have the same effect,
but it definitely doesn't cease being awesome. Entirely awesome. I
enjoyed every little bit of this movie. Incredible cast giving solid
performances, the right amount of chills, fantastic pacing,
absolutely gorgeous camera work, amazing set design... it's just
great. Ultimately, The Conjuring utilizes all the tropes that any old
ghost or possession story does, but it uses them just as well as a
favorite classic.
Costume and set design feel so
authentic to the era of the story. From hair, to clothes, to
furniture. An episode of The Brady Bunch plays on an old wooden box
television in one scene. Remember those glorious things? The look of
the movie kind of reminds me of going through an old photo album and
seeing pictures of your older siblings or parents, or a house
you grew up in. The same can be said for an older film, of course,
but it's always impressive when a newer movie can pull off that
effect. The Conjuring is believably trapped in the time it's
representing.
Onto that gorgeous camera work. We're
introduced to the farmhouse the day the Perron family moves in. From
the front door all the way to the back of the house it's just one
long shot, following one person for a bit, then moving on to the
next. It's not the first time a sequence like this has been used; far
from it, but I can't help but credit the beauty. Another moment
demonstrating this film's awesome visuals is a bedroom scene, in
which one of the Perron daughters looks under her bed. When the
bedroom door moves, she pulls back up, as does the camera- but what's
great is when she pulls herself back up, she turns to the right,
while the camera turns left. It's just fantastic. Wan's attention to
building suspense is smart. Everything is in the right place and
scares happen at the right time.
Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga playing
Ed and Lorraine Warren are absolutely fabulous. It's obvious that
they really care about the material they're working with and want to
make the best out of it. Ron Livingston and Lili Taylor are equally
good as Roger and Carolyn Perron. I've liked Livingston since Office
Space, and have always wished he would be a bigger actor. He and
Taylor, as well as all the child actors make the family believable.
The “hide and clap” game really nails in that realistic feel of
how big group of siblings mess around and play games. While everyone
is really fun to watch here, not enough can be said for Lily Taylor's
performance. She just straight up kills her role, especially in the
last act.
Don't expect a lot of bloodletting
here; The Conjuring doesn't need it. Personally, I think it's a bit
bogus that the movie received an R rating for being “too scary”.
In what world is that fair? Anyway, the movie lives through its eerie
imagery and audio other than gore. Sound effects are a big instrument
here. The movie goes from quiet and seemingly airless to loud and abrasive
without warning. What makes the visuals work creepy-wise is that a
lot of time isn't spent on them, yet, they aren't cheap little jump
scares. As I mentioned earlier, the first half of the movie is much
more successful at freaking you out, but the movie definitely doesn't
lose its intensity during the second half. It just becomes a straight
up awesome horror flick. It's very wild and unrelenting, but I was no
longer looking over my back. I'm kinda glad. It saved me from having
to put a comedy on afterward to settle down.
Joseph Bishara works up one hell of a
ghoulish film score. Very similar to his work in Insidious. It's got
a crazy feeling to it, like the world is falling apart around you, or
opening up and letting things in that shouldn't be welcome. Right
from the start it sets a tone for The Conjuring that lets you know
what you're in for. Big fan of the score here.
Final Word:
James Wan truly knocked it out of the
park with The Conjuring. This is my favorite film of his yet, as far
as horror -Death Sentence overall reigns supreme. It's definitely a
movie that I will watch again and again.
Blu-ray/DVD:
Warner Brothers and New Line Home Video present The Conjuring in a Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD Ultraviolet Combo Pack.
Special Features
The Conjuring: Face-to-Face with Terror - Relive the real-life horror as the Perron family comes together to reflect back on the farmhouse they shared with diabolical spirits for nearly a decade.
A Life in Demonology - The real demonologist and paranormal experts from The Conjuring take you inside their life's work and into their paranormal occult cellar, where they keep haunted and unholy relics from their many cases.
Scaring the "@$*%" Out of You - Director James Wan welcomes you into his world and gives an inside look at the secrets that scare the "@$*%" out of moviegoers time and time again.
Final Word:
The featurettes included are short (A Life In Demonology being the longest) but sweet. They reminded me of watching a segment from Unsolved Mysteries. Very worth your time. My favorite would be the Scaring the "@$*%" Out of You feature, because I really enjoying seeing how directors bring their magic to the screen, and Jams Wan absolutely knows his stuff. As far as the Blu-ray presentation, The Conjuring looks stunning, and the 5.1 DTS-HD Audio track is amazing. It really sells the fright aspect of the film. Overall, this is a fine release.
- Eric (Brobocop)
