A solid scarer that will leave any horror fan satisfied

Rating: 8/10 (4 August 2013)

A few months ago I decided to do my very best to steer clear of trailers. I was simply finding that they were ruining movies for me. So I am proud to say that I didn't see a single trailer for The Conjuring. However, word of mouth was strong on this one. I had heard nothing but terrific things about this and how incredibly scary it was. By the time I went to see it my anticipation was very high. The Conjuring delivers exactly what you would expect. It absolutely met my expectations and satisfied me nearly completely. That being said it did nothing to exceed my expectations and it isn't the best horror flick I've seen (that honour goes squarely to the Evil Dead remake.) It also wasn't nearly as good as Insidious which was far creepier but it was still excellently crafted, well told, well acted and entertaining. There were also some genuinely creepy moments though I felt like it didn't really push my limits. The Conjuring has one significant flaw that held it back in my opinion and that was that it was predictable and cookie cutter and re-hashed material we have seen before in similar "exorcism" type stories including Insidious. However, don't get me wrong because that did not make it less entertaining, it just stopped it from truly outstanding.
I really like Patrick Wilson. I have enjoyed his Television work and the movies I have seen of his. He has a subtle quality about his performances that make him seem down to earth and very relate-able. His performance in this film is captivating and he leads the cast well. He is believable and commanding in his role. Not to be outdone Vera Farmiga is also very good. The two of them together are very good and have great chemistry. They are captivating as the husband and wife paranormal investigators. Ron Livingston and Lili Taylor are the devoted couple whose family is being terrorized by spirits in their new home. Both are good but certainly supporting actors compared to Wilson and Farmiga. Still as the desperate parents they fit the roles very well. Their daughters are played by Shanley Caswell, Hayley McFarland, Joey King, Mackenzie Foy and Kyla Deaver. They are all very good in the role but none of them really stand out either. The cast all work so well together and everyone fits their roles perfectly. Wilson and Farmiga are the focus and everyone else supports them and it works.
I have no doubt that James Wan is a brilliant horror director. I am basing that off the brilliance of the Saw series as a whole and Insidious and now this. He has a desire to tell a good solid story and still scare you. I think he is easily impressionable from horror films he loves and it translates well into his stories. The entire idea of the room of haunted items was really well done and the doll was downright disturbing. The problem is that everything felt a little been there and done that. It was like watching a great exorcism movie but one that you have seen before. Regardless of that though horror fans will thoroughly enjoy this and it is a great ghost story/possession movie that you won't be disappointed with. 8/10