Not as good as the first but way better than a lot of horror films out there

Rating: 7/10 (12 June 2016)

One can literally count on the fingers on one hand the great horror films that are intelligent and yet not derivative. James Wan has honed his arsenal of horror aesthetics through the years and he reached his most potent level with The Conjuring in 2013. One of the reasons Wan succeeds so well in this genre is that he knows the audience - when to tighten the piano wire noose and when to let you take in a breath. The scares are simple yet elegant, and damn well effective. It is a tough act to follow. A little personal story first...
I am an avid reader, a habit that began when my mom gave me a few Enid Blyton books when I was in P3. But the moment I hit Sec 1 I told myself I need to start reading adult fiction. I remember going to Times at Lucky Plaza, a short walk from my school, and picking out a book to start on my next reading journey. I picked up Jay Anson's The Amityville Horror; I figured by reading this genre it meant I am all grownup. It scared the living daylights out of me. To think that all the stuff actually happened really put the fear of God in me. The Conjuring ended with Ed and Lorraine being called to the Amityville haunting and that is where The Conjuring 2 begins.
There is no need for any synopsis because the sequel adheres to its predecessor in form and structure. It is yet another haunted house, this time from across the pond in London. A nice family is being tormented; nightly shenanigans ensue; all levels of hell break loose. An air of familiarity breeds - a little girl possessed, speaking in a husky menacing voice, uncanny levitation - all too familiar. If you have seen the demon possession film The Exorcist, you have seen them all. That isn't a slight against it; merely an observation. As much as Wan can scare us, it is the quiet passages that he also excels in. We understand the pains of the tortured family and the relationship between demonologist and clairvoyant, Ed and Lorraine Warren respectively. Vera Farmiga's Lorraine's tender exterior holds a steadfast sense of justice at bay. Her warm performance counter-balances a Patrick Wilson's Ed who is headstrong in his fight with the demonic monstrosity. Their screen chemistry feels natural and lived-in. It is precisely because Wan makes us fall in love with the characters first that the horror of what happens to them become emotionally unbearable.
IMHO where it fumbles for me is the familiarity of the narrative. I see the usual scares coming and none of them resembles the original in terms of elegance and simplicity. I am also of the opinion that great horror movies do not rely a lot on CGI (take a good look at the good ones in the past few years - It Follows, The Babadook and The Witch). The moment I see CGI-ed ghosts my mind starts to tune off (here's looking at you, Crimson Peak). I am also of the opinion that great horror movies don't have a runtime of over 2 hours. My wife would say "chop chop curry pok" and get it done fast and furious. The Conjuring 2 could have used a faster pace to get to the meat.
Still, this is a solid piece of horror filmmaking culminating in a full-blown final act of symphonic terror in which so much is at stake. I would definitely welcome a third part but James Wan needs to choose the next case from the Warrens' files wisely.