Story-
‘The Conjuring’ is loosely based upon the ‘real life
haunting’ of the Perron family, which occurred in 1971 at their Farmhouse in
Rhode Island. The usual ‘New House Horror’ cliché is the base foundation of the
film’s plot, which is to be expected from a Wan film, with a couple of
flashbacks tying into the story time events of the film. In many ways, this
could have been the setup for a fairly run of the mill, jump scare cash in like
many other films, but the way in which the story is handled creates a more
interesting and deeply explored experience. It makes use of the source material
well, and manages to create a relatively well thought out mythology around the
demon, Bathsheba, and her presence in the Perron family home. Although the film
is not without its share of plot holes and too good to be true moments, that
are becoming far more present in the genre’s modern form. These are, however,
far from film breaking, and aren’t inherently noticeable without the
application of the proverbial fine tooth comb, and even then, they are little
more than a slight annoyance.
Acting + Visuals-
The general acting standard within ‘The Conjuring’ is
surprisingly high. Where other films’ child actors fall down face first, the
children within ‘The Conjuring’ do a good job at translating the imagined fear
of the character into a quite commendable visual display, making the audience
genuinely feel like the actors, as well as the characters themselves, are
terrified of what is happening in their new home. Their expressions are
remarkably believable, as opposed to being overly exaggerated and silly, and
their vocal delivery is surprisingly powerful when required, both in scenes of
horror and scenes of family building. The same can be said about almost all of
the remaining cast members. The two leads (Wilson and Farmiga) are particularly
compelling as the real life paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine Warren.
They bring a feeling of expertise and stability towards the beginning of their
appearance within the film, slowly descending into an admirably portrayed
feeling of past turmoil and dread that builds with the tension of the film’s
events. A similarly noteworthy dual performance comes from the film’s other on
screen couple (Livingston and Taylor) as the husband and wife of the Perron
family, Roger and Carolyn. They play the roles of both loving parents and
terrified victims with equal success, coming across as a believable relatable
couple. The supporting cast is also, again, surprisingly good, with even the
most irrelevant characters such as the town Sheriff being portrayed with a
certain level of expertise and quality. In terms of the film’s visual
presentation, the usual theme of heavy contrast and a de-saturated colour palette
is employed with no significantly ground-breaking effect, other than the usual
tonal implications of this chosen visual style. The camera work carries James
Wan’s trademarked use of extreme close ups and long cuts throughout very
closely linked rooms, that add a sense of claustrophobia to the setting, as
well as a menace, in particular in the case of the infamous ‘Abigail’ doll,
through the use of extreme close ups. The minimal CGI that is used in the film
is, while not perfect, good enough to add to certain scenes without taking the
audience out of the immersion completely.
Music-
Not much can be said about the score of ‘The Conjuring’ that
can’t be said about any other modern horror film soundtrack. It’s use, however,
can be commended, as the right balance of silence and sudden bursts of
orchestral intensity is achieved quite comfortably throughout the film, with
the screaming violins of ‘Insidious’ being reintroduced with a slightly less
sudden, and more dragged out and intense use of grindingly suspenseful strings
that makes certain scenes all the more terrifying as a result.
Watchability (Fear Factor for horror)-
Do not be fooled, as this is a very scary film. It is
definitely one of the scariest Wan-era horrors I have ever seen, with Sinister
taking the second place. What ‘The Conjuring’ does better than its predecessor ‘Insidious’,
is undoubtedly the film’s building of tension. Rather than going with the usual
output of jumpscare after jumpscare, Wan instead favours a far more intelligent
and scary approach, akin to the likes of ‘The Exorcist’. With long cuts and
tense, dragged out music, being used very effectively to build a level of
tension that ultimately makes what starts as a very slow film (for the right
reasons, however) into a memorably frightening horror with a reasonable climax
that, while not as clever as the rest of the film, is still quite frightening,
incorporating a mix of both the classic exorcism, with the more modern
rollercoaster jumpscares so often seen nowadays. Does the final ending pay off
though? This question I would have to answer with a no. While not the most
dissatisfying ending in cinema, it still seemed somewhat too easy for me to
feel truly satisfied. It did, however, set itself up quite well for a sequel.
Verdict-
‘The Conjuring’ is an enjoyably scary film with plenty of
tension and scares that feel less cheap, and cleverer than any Wan-era horror
before it. While not the most satisfying in the ending department, ‘The Conjuring’
still brings more than enough horror fun to the table to warrant a good night
in with the lights out and the volume up high.
Score-
8/10
