The Conjuring a film review
The sadistic screen slashers of Krueger and co are now just mere memories etched on our youthful minds.
But every once in a while a movie crops up that restores my faith in this delectably gruesome genre.
And that movie is The Conjuring.
Director James Wan has proved horror films still have the power to tear us from our seats and scare the bejeebers out of us.
And from Saw to Insidious, Wan’s ability to bring unnerving terror to his work gains credence with his latest offering.
Based on a'true story' and set in 1971, Roger Perron (Ron Livingston) and his wife Carolyn (Lili Taylor) along with their five daughters, have moved into a house in Harrisville, Rhode Island.
Within a week birds are crashing into the side of it, Carolyn’s body has become plagued with mysterious bruises and their daughter is sleepwalking and banging her head against a wardrobe.
Oh, and their dog’s dead…
It’s time to call in paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) to explore the eerie goings-on.
Suddenly we’re plunged into an Exorcist style story as the Warrens explain to the family that a spirit is latching itself on to Carolyn so she’ll murder her children.
The film’s jittery music adds to a crisp drama, and together with the dark visuals, delivers a bounty of genuine jump out of your skin shocks.
And it’s bolstered too by the fine acting prowess of its main female characters played superbly by Vera Farmiga and Lili Taylor.
The Conjuring is reminiscent of recent Spanish masterpiece The Orphanage, in that it stirs a real sympathy for its characters; skips cheap thrills and leans toward viewers with a taste for prolonged suspense-filled scenes.
And although there is nothing particularly innovative in The Conjuring, it mixes all the spooky principles of the horror genre to create a nerve-shredding tale that’ll leave you gripped throughout and enthralled by the end.
Be warned though, you might never want to play hide and seek with your kids again.
To view a trailer for
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k10ETZ41q5o