As a filmmaker, James Wan plays to the reptile brain of his audience, orchestrating such autonomous body functions as heart rate, breath and goosebumps like a maestro.
In movies from "Saw" to "Furious 7," and now "The Conjuring 2," a sequel to his ghostly 2013 hit, the filmmaker bypasses higher brain function, plugging directly into the peanut-shaped circuit board - buried deep beneath your to-do lists - that makes you jump out of your skin when you hear a loud noise.
If "The Conjuring 2" is not quite the achievement of the original (and what sequel is?), it nevertheless manifests a canny understanding of what modern audiences expect from a ghost story, delivering slowly mounting dread, punctuated by alternating bursts of terror and laughter.
Set in 1977 England, and inspired by events that have come to be known as the Enfield Haunting (from the North London borough in which they took place), the film centers on a working-class family of five. Single mother Peggy Hodgson (Frances O'Connor) and her four children are terrorized by the ghost of a former occupant of their shabby house, Bill Wilkins (Bob Adrian), after her youngest daughter, 11-year-old Janet Hodgson (Madison Wolfe), opens the door to the underworld by messing around with a Ouija board.
It's certainly not the first time we've seen the spirit-board gimmick used to invite a malevolent entity to pass through the veil between this world and the next. Working from a script Wan co-wrote with "The Conjuring" sibling screenwriters Carey and Chad Hayes and David Johnson ("Orphan"), the filmmaker demonstrates that he is not averse to re-using dusty old tropes: a creepy mechanical toy, levitation, a seemingly possessed television set - all these cliches and more are trotted out in service of the desired effect, while exhibiting only minimal signs of wear.
(One doesn't fault Brahms for using the same notes as Beethoven, does one? It also should be noted that the real Hodgsons are purported to have triggered their poltergeist attack with an ill-advised Ouija session.)
Other aspects of the story are less faithful, although, to its credit, "The Conjuring 2" does include a character (Franka Potente) who exists merely to debunk the Hodgsons' claims of haunting. Accusations of a hoax have swirled around the Enfield case since the 1970s, and it helps that Wan acknowledges this, inoculating the film - if only a tad - against charges of excessive credulity.
It takes a while for the film's real stars to show up. After a brief prologue set in Amityville, New York, in 1976 - during an investigation of that infamous haunting by professional ghostbusters Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) - the Warrens finally get invited to Enfield. By that point, things have gotten out of hand. Janet seems to be possessed by the spirit of Bill Wilkins, who for unexplained reasons wants the Hodgsons out of "his" house, threatening to kill them- and the Warrens - if they don't leave.
Of course, if you've seen the film's trailers (or any of Wan's "Insidious" films"), you already know that there's more going on here than a poltergeist infestation. One of Wan's weaknesses is a predilection for demons that borders on religious obsession. To his mind, one measly old ghost is never enough.
Where "The Conjuring 2" goes off the rails a bit is in its insistence on dredging up a monstrous satanic entity - in a nun's habit, no less, wearing deranged clown makeup that makes him look like Marcel Marceau on a murder spree - to supplement the level of malevolence generated by Wilkins. Another shortcoming is the story's inability to clearly differentiate between the world of apparitions and our material one. What ghost, for instance, drops a set of real dentures?
At the same time, "The Conjuring 2" satisfies more than it disappoints. As Wan's story swells to its inevitable, almost operatic crescendo, playfully balancing the hush of your own held breath with the kettle drum of your heart beating against your rib cage, one thing becomes evident: You're not the audience for this symphony of terror; you're the instrument.
---
Two and one-half stars. Rated R. Contains violence and intense frights. 134 minutes.
Ratings Guide: Four stars masterpiece, three stars very good, two stars OK, one star poor, no stars waste of time.
The Washington Post
Fri Jun 10 2016
Madison Wolfe as Janet Hodgson in "The Conjuring 2." Pix Warner Bros. Pictures
SDG30: Pencapaian Malaysia menggalakkan, tak bermaksud boleh berpuas hati – PM Anwar
Laporan penilaian SDG menunjukkan Malaysia mencapai 43 peratus pelaksanaan, berbanding pencapaian purata negara lain iaitu 17 peratus.
Niaga AWANI: AmInvestment turunkan unjuran harga minyak mentah Brent
Harga minyak mentah Brent untuk 2024 kini disemak semula kepada 83 Dolar Amerika setong berbanding ramalan awal 85 Dolar Amerika, dengan jangkaan untuk 2025 ditetapkan pada 80 Dolar Amerika setong.
Niaga AWANI: Pelabur asing beli bersih RM217.6 juta ekuiti
Ini merupakan pembelian bersih untuk minggu kelima berturut-turut menjelang jangkaan pelonggaran Rizab Persekutuan Amerika Syarikat minggu ini.
Niaga AWANI: Bukan lagi terletak pada institusi kewangan lalu - Anwar
Ekonomi Islam bukan lagi terletak pada institusi kewangan terdahulu menerajui ekonomi terutama dalam sudut penolakan sistem riba.
Niaga AWANI: China gesa AS tarik balik pengumuman tarif baharu
Kementerian Perdagangan China menggesa Amerika Syarikat membatalkan keputusannya menaikkan tarif ke atas barangan buatan negaranya.
PM Anwar terkesan dengan pemergian bekas Gabenor Bank Negara Tan Sri Ahmad Mohd Don
Perdana Menteri terkesan dengan pemergian sahabatnya bekas Gabenor Bank Negara Tan Sri Ahmad Mohd Don yang meninggal dunia pagi tadi.
Hamas sifatkan AS gagal beri tekanan kepada Israel
Pegawai Hamas, Ghazi Ahmad berkata Amerika Syarikat gagal memberi tekanan kepada Israel dalam usaha merealisasikan gencata senjata di Gaza.
Najib berkerusi roda ke mahkamah hadir lanjutan prosiding
Datuk Seri Najib Razak kelihatan lemah ketika hadir perbicaraan 1MDB tetapi sempat melambai kepada media di pintu masuk mahkamah.
Angka korban meningkat, rundingan gencatan senjata masih tidak berhasil
Menghampiri satu tahun bermulanya konflik secara besar-besaran itu, kekejaman dan kezaliman Zionis terus dipertingkat ditambah dengan rundingan gencatan senjata yang masih belum menemui noktah.
Perlu ada tekas politik bagi merealisasikan perjanjian gencatan senjata
Duta Amerika Syarikat ke Pertubuhan Bangsa-Bangsa Bersatu (PBB) menyifatkan usaha merealisasikan perjanjian gencatan senjata memerlukan tekad politik daripada pihak Hamas dan Israel.
Hasil jerih payah tinggalkan keluarga 5 bulan, penerbit 'Mortal Kombat' menangis akhirnya...
Todd Garner terharu kerana segala penat lelahnya untuk menerbitkan filem ini mendapat sambutan baik dari peminat filem Mortal Kombat.
Aktres Jerman pilihan Pengarah Hollywood James Wan
Penulis skrip dan pengarah filem kelahiran Sarawak James Wan mengumumkan perkahwinannya bersama aktres Jerman, Ingrid Bisu.
James Wan telah bertunang!
Pasangan ini telah bertunang kira-kira lima bulan lalu.
Annabelle Comes Home kembali lagi untuk bermain dengan anda
Annabelle Comes Home merupakan filem sekuel kedua daripada siri legenda patung Annabelle, selepas filem Annabelle: Creation yang ditayangkan pada Ogos 2017.
Aquaman kutip lebih USD1 bilion selepas 22 hari
Dengan kutipan sebanyak USD4.5 juta di Amerika Utara dan USD5.4 juta di luar negara membuatkan filem itu berjaya mengutip sejumlah USD988.6 juta pada Jumaat.
Aquaman ungguli carta filem DC Universe
Aquaman berjaya catat kutipan global berjumlah AS$649.3 juta.
Lagenda La Llorona temui peminat filem seram April 2019
Ceritanya berdasarkan legenda rakyat Mexico,La Llorona atau The Weeping Woman, roh wanita kehilangan anak yang merayau mencari kanak-kanak sesat untuk dijadikan anaknya