PopHorror Let's Get Scared
For die hard horror fans, we all know her name and can agree that Annabelle is one of the creepiest dolls of all time. Each time I see the original Annabelle doll, you know: that huge red haired doll… I shiver a little bit. Even when I was watching an old Susan Sarandon film called Joe, her character in the movie had the doll, and it me think of The Conjuring universe. This franchise is ever expanding, and with how the current Annabelle Comes Home plays out we might be seeing it for a long, long, long time! So if you haven’t seen the movie yet… look away, because this review will contain spoilers.
Annabelle Comes Home brings back Vera Farmiga (Godzilla: King of the Monsters 2019) and Patrick Wilson (Aquaman 2018), the cornerstone duo of The Conjuring universe. Yes, the Warrens are back! McKenna Grace (The Haunting of Hill House 2018) also stars as the Warrens’ daughter, Judy.
Gary Dauberman wrote and directed the film. Dauberman, hot off a huge string of successes, penned the screenplays for the first two Annabelle films, Stephen King’s IT (2017 – read our review here) and IT: Chapter Two (2019), The Nun (2018), and even episodes of the D.C. Universe original series, Swamp Thing (2019).
Synopsis for Annabelle Comes Home
While babysitting the daughter of Ed and Lorraine Warren, a teenager and her friend unknowingly awaken an evil spirit trapped in a doll.
I will say that I was holding my anticipation back on this film a little bit even though I love The Conjuring universe. It’s my favorite horror franchise out right now and Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga are the best movie couple ever. The chemistry they have together is priceless. Not a lot of on screen couples can capture that. They seem like a real life husband and wife and Vera plays Loraine Warren with such gravitas and precision. Actresses should be jealous that Vera found her role of a lifetime. This movie definitely iincludes Ed and Lorraine Warren, and moreso than previous news had us believe. To my relief they didn’t feel forced into the story at all. In fact, they helped make it better!
McKenna Grace is fantastic as Judy Warren. Most horror movies rely heavily on the adult actors and not so much the teenagers and children. This movie bucks that trend, mainly because of McKenna Grace’s performance. It’s one of the best performances in recent horror movie memory. I’m very excited to see what she has to offer us in the future. She could be the next Toni Collette! As the movie goes on, Judy finds out she has visions like her mother and that’s where my previous statement comes in to play: this franchise could have longevity for the long haul.
The film’s pacing is solid; it moves at a ferocious pace. The supporting cast holds their own, despite being composed of relatively all newcomers to the franchise. It feels like they’ve been here all along. Joseph Bishara returns to give us another haunting score.
Longtime James Wan collaborator Gary Dauberman does a fine job with directing. When it’s all said and done, he puts all the pieces together in what is one of the best horror films of the year!
