The Conjuring (2013)

Written by CinemaSerf on September 8, 2022

"Ed Warren" (Patrick Wilson) and his wife "Lorraine" (Vera Farmiga) are renowned paranormal investigators drafted in by the at-their-wits-end "Perron" family to their remote Rhode Island farmhouse that they are convinced is possessed. It doesn't take them long to realise that this whole area has been the scene of Satanic worship since time immemorial, and those lingering spirits have got it in for the new occupants of the house - and their five increasingly hysterical daughters. James Wan really does develop this story with an effective degree of menace and Ron Livingston and Lili Taylor work well together as the parents scared out of their pants by the goings-on in their dream home that is turning into a nightmare that perhaps even an exorcism won't resolve. Joseph Bishara presents us with an eerily effective musical accompaniment to this story and the acrobatic and prosthetic visual effects all contribute effectively to create a real sense of malevolence that, unusually for many in this genre - it has a degree of plausibility too. Big screen experience is better especially in a busy cinema, and well worth a watch.