A mesmerizing horror flick that is one of the better movie sequels in recent memory

Rating: 8/10 (21 October 2016)

The Conjuring came out in the year 2013. It was a supernatural horror movie based on a real life incident, set in the 1970s, and it focused on the efforts of the demonologists Ed Warren and Lorraine Warren to help a distressed family get rid of an evil spirit, which had possessed one of the family members. The movie had its scary moments and was fun to watch from the start to the finish. The Conjuring received rave reviews from both critics and fans alike and was a commercial success. This left the audience craving for a sequel, and after the release of the somewhat disappointing spin-off movie called "Annabelle", the developers finally released the sequel called "The Conjuring 2" this year in 2016.
The Conjuring 2 is a very similar movie to the first movie and follows a similar plot line. The movie is set three years after the first Conjuring and once again a family in distress is haunted by an evil spirit in their place of residence in England. The family begs for help for Ed and Lorraine Warren to help them, after it is obvious that the local authorities or the priests could not control the situation. What separates this plot line from the first movie is that this particular job is more personal for Lorraine and Ed Warren.
Much like the Conjuring, this movie is based on a real life case, although it has been glorified for theatrical and dramatic reasons to engross the audience. This movie actually comes off as more scary than the first movie, because the spirit or demon in this movie seems far more powerful and dangerous than the one the prequel and there is more focus on the horror sections as compared to the first movie. The first movie did very well due to its dramatic performances from the lead actors and comparatively was not that scary.
Performance wise, the cast does really well. Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson are almost perfect for the role of Lorraine and Ed Warren respectively and give their best effort. Madison Wolfe who plays the possessed girl Janet, also performs very well in her role. Frances O'Connor who plays the role of the mother of the children, also does an excellent job of playing the role of a mother who is traumatized with what has happened. The rest of cast also gives a commendable effort.
The sound effects of the movie are done remarkably well as they add to the horror element of the move and intensifies the scary moments in the movie to engage and gripe the audience, and this results in many nerve-racking moments throughout the entire movie. The movie is not heavy on special effects or gimmicks, the special effects are just on point and the creepy background and demonic voices only add to the horror element of the movie.
My main problem with the movie would be with the length, the movie goes longer than 2 hours and somewhat drags by the time it reaches the climax. The movie drags on so long is because of the heavy involvement of the media in it, some people in the media were hell bent on proving that the family was faking the incident. This movie could have done without these sections.
Overall the Conjuring 2 is a great supernatural horror movie and a great follow up to its predecessor. Nowadays, movie sequels hardly deliver and are more of a cash grab that is not the case with the Conjuring as the movie is arguably almost as good as or even better than the first movie, and in many instances also creepier than the first movie. This is a must watch for anyone who likes to watch horror movie, it would be a mesmerizing experience from the start to the finish.