A solid horror film

Rating: 7/10 (4 August 2013)

I'm not really all that sure what to think of The Conjuring. After reading several rave reviews and many "omg, scariest film ever!!" tweets, I went to go see it last night.
This film is scary. There is absolutely no denying that. The film follows a fairly typical series of events, of course beginning with the bumps in the night, the mysterious stoppings of the clocks in the house (and the somewhat expected death of the dog...come on, we knew it wasn't going to live long out there). These happenings across the house help to build an intense tension which thoroughly had me on the edge of my seat. When the mother becomes possessed, the film thankfully doesn't go too over the top, and the scene where she's facing her husband smiling like a...well, possessed woman was utterly blood chilling. However, I found the end of the film to be just a little on the cheesy side. The whole "yay, mummy's not possessed anymore, group hug with big smiles!" and the cheery music was a little corny.
My biggest issue however, is that the plot is a little confusing. The film begins in an apartment (I believe?), with two women and a male describing how they believe a toy doll is possessed. Then, the film cuts to the family moving into their new house. The doll has been placed under the watchful eye of two ghost-hunters, and doesn't feature until the climax of the film, where it doesn't play any key role. I felt that the beginning of the film and the rest of it were a little disjointed.
Overall, I'd say that The Conjuring was an enjoyable watch. The creepy goings ons around the house, and the extremely unnerving climax to the film featuring an exorcism provide a truly scary watch. The film however stumbles a little due to the confusing plot line. 7/10.