31 Days of Horror Part II: Day 13 – The Conjuring (2013)

31 Days of Horror, Film Reviews

31 Days of Horror Part II: Day 13 – The Conjuring (2013)

Kyle A. Goethe

October 14, 2015

1–2 minutes

Director: James Wan

Cast: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor

Screenplay: Chad Hayes, Carey W. Hayes

112 mins. Rated R for sequences of disturbing violence and terror.

James Wan (Saw, Furious 7) is THE horror director of today. The man is known for creating tone and utilizing it perfectly to create a terrifying atmospheric experience. He also shows that he can learn from mistakes, and nowhere is that more apparent than what is likely his best work, The Conjuring.

Carolyn (Lili Taylor, Say Anything, Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials) and Roger Perron (Ron Livingston, Office Space, Vacation) are loving their new home. But there is a presence in the home, and it is taking its toll on Carolyn. In steps Ed (Patrick Wilson, TV’s Fargo, Insidious) and Lorraine Warren (TV’s Bates Motel, The Departed), two paranormal investigators (demonologists, technically) who are looking to solve the family’s dilemma. But this demonic force isn’t willing to go lightly, and wants to take the Perrons, and perhaps the Warrens, with it.

The screenplay by Chad and Carey W. Hayes (House of Wax, Whiteout) is where it starts. This screenplay combines that perfect mixture of horror with lightheartedness and humor that James Wan thrives on.

What also helps Wan thrive is the perfect blend of great actors and professional genre performers that blend into such a realistic and thrilling experience.

James Wan’s previous film Insidious was great but had issues, namely the overuse of music and the overappearance of the big villain. In The Conjuring, he learns from these mistakes and excels here with pure vision. The Conjuring is a pure modern masterpiece in just about every way.

5/5

-Kyle A. Goethe

For more 31 Days of Horror, click here.

For my review of James Wan’s Insidious, click here.

For my review of James Wan’s Furious 7, click here.

14 responses to “31 Days of Horror Part II: Day 13 – The Conjuring (2013)”

AlmightyGoatman’s 10 Most Anticipated Films of 2016! – AlmightyGoatman

January 13, 2016 at 9:46 pm

[…] season, and The Conjuring 2 is it. Never mind Annabelle (truth be told, haven’t seen it yet), The Conjuring is an excellent horror film that learned from all the great work and all the mistakes of director […]

Reply
New The Conjuring 2 Trailer Drops…Price of Adult Diapers Goes Up! – AlmightyGoatman

March 27, 2016 at 12:01 pm

[…] James Wan, who brought us the original The Conjuring as well as Insidious, has definitely used his knowledge of action gained through his work on […]

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[Early Review] [31 Days of Horror 3] Day 18 – Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016) – AlmightyGoatman

October 18, 2016 at 11:24 pm

[…] from other horror films that have been here before and done it better. I saw pieces of Insidious, The Conjuring, and The Exorcist here, and none of it done in a particularly memorable way. I’m glad that […]

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Kyle’s Top Ten Films of 2016 – AlmightyGoatman

January 9, 2017 at 10:44 pm

[…] great movie from 2016 was the hotly-anticipated sequel to the classified horror classic from 2013, The Conjuring. Director James Wan returned to helm the sequel which hopped across the pond to Enfield to see Ed […]

Reply
[Early Review] Annabelle: Creation (2017) – AlmightyGoatman

August 10, 2017 at 11:57 am

[…] I had the chance to catch an early screening for Annabelle: Creation, the prequel to a prequel to The Conjuring. If that sounds confusing, that’s because it is. Real quick, let’s track this […]

Reply
Saw (2004) – AlmightyGoatman

November 4, 2017 at 8:01 am

[…] For my review of James Wan’s The Conjuring, click here. […]

Reply
[Early Review] The Nun (2018) – AlmightyGoatman

September 6, 2018 at 9:07 am

[…] been a fan of The Conjuring universe since the first film, and outside of the original Annabelle film, I’ve found them to be […]

Reply
[Early Review] The Curse of La Llorona (2019) – GOAT Film Reviews

April 18, 2019 at 12:03 pm

[…] Universe? It states on most of the material that the film has the same producers and studio as The Conjuring, but not once in the marketing is expressly stated. I just don’t get it. This film is not like […]

Reply
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) – GOAT Film Reviews

June 26, 2019 at 7:01 am

[…] to rise out of the shadow of Marvel, probably the fourth best one after the MCU, the DCEU, and The Conjuring Universe. It’s also the one that feels more easily connected, but it also feels like if has […]

Reply
Ocean Master Patrick Wilson Returning for Aquaman 2 – GOAT Film Reviews

November 18, 2019 at 10:23 am

[…] hear my complain about more Patrick Wilson and James Wan. I loved what they did with Insidious and The Conjuring, and for all of its flaws, I really had fun with Aquaman. It isn’t a great film by any […]

Reply
Annabelle Comes Home (2019) – GOAT Film Reviews

December 3, 2019 at 8:03 am

[…] to the story and really help to bring this whole universe together. It always felt to me that The Conjuring films were seen as higher importance because Ed and Lorraine never appeared in the other films, but […]

Reply
[Early TV Review] 50 States of Frights: Almost There (Iowa) (2020) – GOAT Film Reviews

October 5, 2020 at 2:37 pm

[…] that one night. When she awakens late in the evening with a phone call from Blake (Ron Livingston, The Conjuring, The Professor), asking her to come repair a damaged wind turbine in a howling storm, she is forced […]

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[31 Days of Horror Part VII: The New Blood] Day 12 – Annabelle (2014) – GOAT Film Reviews

October 12, 2020 at 5:49 pm

[…] Marvel) in film currently would be the Conjuring Universe? I certainly didn’t peg that, but when The Conjuring first hit cinemas, I knew this was something special I was seeing. I had become a huge fan of James […]

Reply
Kyle’s Most Anticipated Films of 2021 – GOAT Film Reviews

January 23, 2021 at 12:46 pm

[…] sequel has a lot to live up to. The first two Conjuring films are almost certified classics of the horror genre at this point, and while James Wan is no […]

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