La Monja II

Knowing that Ed is present for the exorcism of frenchie and that's technically a pivotal moment in the relationship of Ed and Loraine (according to the films), and the look Irene gives Frenchy at the end of the film makes me certain we're due for a 3rd Nun film. I had a feeling this movie was going to be a bit stale. The design and appearance of the Nun creeping in dark shadowy halls in the film has lost its shock factor. And the increased exposure of the creature has decreased the menacing creepiness of the Nun. It always was more terrifying when all you were able to see was a silhouette of the Nun and the pale face. I give them credit as they've built a pretty solid story building to the exorcism of Frenchy. They've also found creative ways of adding these religious relics to the storyline as weapons against the demon. When they first released Annabelle people were really creeped out by the dolls lore. In 2023 it's looked at as a new age Chucky doll attached to a major film franchise. It feels like the Conjuring Universe is building to something huge. I have said for years it's building to a Amityville Film as a grand finale. But after this film and the inevitable third film, it's clear that the franchise might want to find a new horrific creature from the cases of the Warren's to add to the library of horror.

In my opinion, the character "The Nun a.k.a (Valak)" was best portrayed in the movie "The Conjuring 2". I didn't like its first solo movie. The atmosphere wasn't bad, but I didn't like it anyway. I didn't like the second movie either. It could be better. In terms of atmosphere, it wasn't as good as the first movie. The plot of the movie was poor. There ara lots of horror movie clichés. There were many jump-scare scenes. I thought it was out of fashion nowadays, but they used it too much in this movie. This spoils the viewing pleasure. There were a few scenes that I liked very much. Even though it was a jump-scare scene, I liked the goat scene. The acting was good, of course, but the weak script. BTW Bonnie Aarons was great again.

Given that The Nun (2018) was nothing more than a polished-looking series of loud noises and nonsensical happenings, I was not looking forward to the sequel.

And even though The Nun II has its share of cheap scares and a few unintentionally funny moments, I was shocked by how much better it is than the first film.

Flashes of greatness are seen here-more often than not it's directed with considerable skill and far more restraint than the first movie was. It's quieter and more patient at first, fleshing out its characters before things get insane in the third act.

As for these character dynamics, they're actually interesting this time around. The dialogue is sometimes cheesy, but there's a sincerity to the humans in this story that gives a gripping quality to the film's perilous moments.

There's certainly quite a bit of bad to be found here, but I actually liked more of this than I didn't. Hopefully these movies will get back to being good.

I think I need to shift my perspective on what The Nun movies are supposed to be. The Conjuring films are great, full of scares, great writing. Annabelle is also pretty freaky. The Nun... feels more like Indiana Jones or a Disneyworld ride. Made-for-amusement-park action, props, and themes. Each time I go in expecting to be freaked out by "the greatest evil in the Conjuring Universe" just to walk away feeling like I went through a haunted house at Six Flags. The Nun II was not scary, barely interesting, and quite honestly boring at times. Conjuring Universe I love you, but let's send the Nun back to hell for good.

My dedication to the horror genre leads me to seeing a lot of films at the cinema that I fully expect to be rubbish. Like the Nun II, which I had very little real interest in watching since I couldn't remember much about the first one, other than the fact that I didn't like it. And for a long time, the film is just as bland and generic as I had imagined it would be, director Michael Chaves taking matters far too seriously, with a dreary pace, gloomy cinematography and all of the religious horror clichés he can cram in.

Then, just as I was about to give up all hope of being entertained, Chaves seems to remember that, hey, horror films can be fun! After the introduction of a demonic goat (Satan himself?), the film really picks up, with action, excitement, and a few well-crafted scares (I think I actually jumped a couple of times, but that was probably down to the extremely loud noises that accompany the jumpy bits). If only there had been some of this liveliness during the earlier parts of the film - The Nun II could have been really good instead of just okay.

My rating: 6/10.