A Vast Improvement Over the Original

Rating: 8/10 (19 December 2016)

The Conjuring 2 follows the Warren couple as they discover another family is being haunted and sets out to help them, meanwhile spiritual troubles have started with themselves.
Personally I didn't care for the first movie that much. I thought it was largely cheap horror without much substance. The sequel, however, takes everything it predecessor did right, then puts it into a much better movie.
Similar to the last movie, the performances are all good. Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson continue to be great, but another standout was Frances O'Connor. She plays the mother of the haunted family, and she does a dang good job of it. The kids are good too, most notably Madison Wolfe, who plays the girl the ghost primarily goes after.
Unlike it's predecessor, this movie is actually pretty unnerving throughout. The movie takes a similar approach to the original where it develops both the Warrens outside the haunting and those who are haunted before ultimately bringing them together. It works very well here, and the movie is much more upfront with it's scares, yet it's not really over-the-top for the first half. As such, we see the family's relationships get tested, and it develops and makes the audience care much more for them. So each scare becomes that much more effective. Even without that, the movie is creepy. It uses the fear of the unknown very well, and builds up a tense atmosphere with immense payoff.
Speaking of the payoff, the climax is outstanding. The first movie had a notably good climax, and for me that more or less saved the film. Here, it's even better. It's longer, and thus the tension builds more. And there are aspects that are hinted at (or more, outwardly stated) earlier in the movie, so when those aspects present themselves it only makes it better. I was on the edge of my seat, and while I was sure I knew the ending, I wasn't completely certain. And that's another thing I loved about this movie.
The movie is great with it's mystery. Towards the end especially I began to question it, and while I was sure I knew what was going to happen, again, I wasn't completely certain. The movie had proved itself to be pretty brave thus far, who knows? Maybe it would turn everything on it's head.
The first act is brilliantly shot. It features several noticeably long takes, and it further shows just how much skill went into this movie. Unfortunately those shots do take a dip in the last portion, or maybe they became less noticeable once the story picked up, but regardless it was a treat to see this level of skill from a director.
Overall The Conjuring 2 is somehow not only a good horror sequel, but a great one. It's a beautifully shot, genuinely unnerving, well- performed horror that I had a blast with. I'm looking forward to seeing it again, and in the end I would definitely recommend it.