FEATURE: Shocktober - The Conjuring

Over the course of October, I shall be watching one horror movie a day and reviewing it right here for your reading pleasure. I haven't seen any of the films I'll be watching before and you can find the full list here.

If you've been following these reviews all month, you'll know that haunted houses are an easy way to scare me if a film does it well and if not, a quick way to turn me off if it's done badly. In order to provide you with a bit of context for what I have to say about The Conjuring, I have to admit I've not been as convinced by James Wan's output as some people. His two major horror contributions to date have been solid, if not particularly exemplary. Saw was an intriguing premise made a good deal better by a killer twist and undone in subsequent sequels whilst I'm one of those people who feels that Insidious' strong build-up was undone by a batshit crazy third act. Insidious 2? Well, that was more a horror mash-up than a movie within its own right. 

Now in contrast to these films, The Conjuring feels like a horror film-maker at the top of his game, spinning out and subverting cliches to produce something really quite remarkable. It's based on the true story (though how true you think it is probably depends on your levels of scepticism) of the Perron family who experienced a series of disturbances at their home and called in paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren to help. They quickly discover the house has been the location for plenty of nasty occurrences over the years and the source appears to be a witch who sacrificed herself to the Devil.

Watching this film in close proximity to Dark Skies filled me marginally with dread as I approached this viewing. Hackneyed haunted house stories are just so dull and I wasn't sure I could put up with another one. However, The Conjuring proved me wrong at every turn. The film builds the suspense slowly and carefully, establishing the family and their dynamics as well as those of the Warrens before anything spooky starts to happen. It's simple stuff really, but this early groundwork pays off because when everything does start to go south, there's an emotional bond with these characters. You understand their decisions and why they sometimes make silly ones like investigating the dodgy boarded-up cellar. 

Across the Wan films mentioned here, family is a key theme. In Insidious, it's the near loss of a son that unites them against the dark spirit trying to steal him away whilst in Saw, returning to family is one character's primary motivation for doing something really horrific to himself to escape. It crops up again in The Conjuring and whilst I won't go into too many details, it's the destruction of family that is the supernatural force's biggest threat, particularly related to the actions of the parents, and it is in their homes that they find themselves under attack. The performances here are exceptionally good, especially the maternal strength of Lili Taylor and Vera Farmiga in their roles and the connections they have with Ron Livingston and Patrick Wilson portraying their respective husbands. It's these relationships that carry the emotional core of the film and everything is that bit scarier because these people are so lovely.

I've spoken before about the concept of places and how to make them seem threatening. The family home is usually seen as a place of safety, which is why haunted house or home invasion narratives are often so chilling. Wan is particularly inventive in this respect, utilising the camera to disorientate the viewer and make the house seem completely unknowable. You fly through doorways, hang upside down on ceilings and crash through walls. In some scenes, it even feels as if you're allied with the supernatural beings themselves, so obscure is your viewpoint on the proceedings. It also helps to throw you off the scent; there are moments when something is kept in focus and you are absolutely sure something's about to make you jump and then... it doesn't. Wan cuts away and continues to ramp up the tension and when that scare comes, the payoff feels that much bigger.

And it's only the second film this month to pass the 'pause and make a cup of tea' test. And if that isn't a recommendation, I don't know what is.

- Becky

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FILM REVIEW: Insidious Chapter 2 ****

It is a truth universally recognised, at least in the world of Film, that unless you’re Peter Jackson and you’ve already got some pretty spot-on source material on your side, sequels are rarely a good idea. This is a thesis particularly applicable to horror movies. I need only say Jeepers Creepers 2 in order to make a a reasonably substantial jab at my point. Thankfully though, with Director James Wan still at the helm, Insidious: Chapter 2 turned out to be just as unnervingly wacky, witty and jumpy as its predecessor, with a few surprises of its own thrown in.

...Chapter 2 sees us back with the Lambert family, Josh (Patrick Wilson), Renai (Rose Byrne) and their two sons. They’re staying with Patrick’s mother Lorraine (Barbara Hershey) whilst the police inspect their house, after the as yet unexplained murder of hands-on medium Elise (Lin Shaye) at the end of the first film. The family are desperate to put the haunting of son Dalton (Ty Simpkins) by disembodied spectres desperate to steal his young body from beyond the grave behind them. However, this proves somewhat difficult as it becomes increasingly clear that not only have they been followed by the deceased inhabitants of purgatory reminiscent The Further once again, but that something is also very, very wrong with Josh. Lorraine, as well as psychic assistants Specs, played by screenwriter Leigh Whannell and Tucker (Angus Samson) set out to figure out the childhood family secret from whence all this began in order to avenge Elise’s death and save the Lambert family from their torment once and for all.

As with Insidous, this second offering from Whannell and Wan began with typically jumpy, sinister, bog-standard horror film fare. Only, as fans have now come to expect from the pair, with far more wit and originality than much of their competition.  Flashbacks to Josh’s childhood, set long before the timeline of the first film, work particularly well, especially during an exceptional set of scenes later on in which it and the present timeline are set side by side. Again, as with the first movie, the second half of the film wandered off into a totally bonkers area of imagination that will probably prove just as marmite as it did back in 2010. The truly wonderful element of the franchise, though, remains the utter sense of chaos we’re treated to as an audience, the feeling that absolutely anything could happen next. This only intensifies with every passing minute of the film, particularly as its frankly gorgeous cinematography gives the absolute maximum exposure to all the scares. 

The return of principles Byrne and Wilson for the sequel also worked strongly in the film’s favour, lending continuity as well as a familiarity that makes you genuinely root for them throughout all of the madness, parallel worlds and ladies in period costume with creepy lipstick. This tactical use of an anchor is only added to by the marvellous Specs and Tucker, a comic relief double act I have long waxed lyrical about. Their reassuring presence somehow puts us as an audience on even more of an emotional rollercoaster than we would otherwise be, making the laughs bigger and the scares scarier. Maximum credit also to Patrick Wilson, who, without giving too much away, gives an utterly outstanding performance as the father trying to protect his family, eventually becoming just as haunted as they are.

With its descent into total discord, vaguely historical costumes and ever growing body-count Insidious: Chapter 2 is just as gloriously, unashamedly barmy as its predecessor.  If it’s your cup of tea, it’ll knock you out of your seat. Perhaps not to the same extent as with the Lambert family’s first outing, but enough. Certainly enough to warrant the lost popcorn you’ll end up ferreting around on the floor for after the first few door slams. Above all though, its enough to make you nod your head on the way out of the cinema, believing that this was a sequel worth making.

Which in horror film terms at least, is pretty high praise.

****

-          Jen

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