Not quite what I hoped, but nevertheless a damn solid horror movie

Rating: 9/10 (19 December 2013)

Just finished watching "The Conjuring", only now did I get the blu-ray.
Since I wasn't among the first people to see this in the theaters, my expectations were a little skewed. I was hearing and reading about this film being an instant classic and how terrifying this movie is. Naturally I let myself to expect the most horrifying (in a good way) thing anyone's ever put on screen. That wasn't the case, and I would advise to adjust any expectations accordingly. Looks like this film created a hype that became its own worst enemy. That said, I was still pretty tense the whole time, enjoyed the ride and not once did my attention or interest falter.
Think of "The Conjuring" as a mosaic. It has many elements of all the classic demonic/poltergeist/paranormal/witchcraft movies. It is not original at all, but it is so well made that it deserves some serious compliments. These are my compliments:

The movie takes its time. The first hour is basically just setting up the last part of the movie. But it's never boring. Fans of more slow-paced storytelling will like the first hour and the way that the mood is built, and fans of "crapload of stuff happening all at once" can enjoy the hectic 3rd act. I think the film lost a little of its magic in the end, but you may think otherwise.

Absence of many annoying clichés. There really aren't that many jumpscares. And when they do happen, it's not the old "camera turning with a person it follows while zooming into a scary face" - trick. We don't get stupid characters doing stupid things or overly skeptic people that need to be constantly convinced that something out of this world is really happening. We don't get a forced twist to the mystery in the end, the whole mystery is pretty much clear a little over halfway into the movie. Also, the ending rewards the viewer. Wow, never thought that would happen.

Visuals and sound. The movie is set in 1970's, and it's a wonderful choice. The house, the clothes, the equipment, everything is as it should be so the setting itself is great. Add some nice camera work, good lighting, some freaky make-up and we're good to go. The overall "style" is just right and handled well. When you watch this movie, be sure to have the volume up. The sound department did a fantastic job, and I can't stress this enough: turn the volume up.

I did like the cast. Even Ron Livingston. But Patrick Wilson, Lili Taylor and the ever beautiful Vera Farmiga get the biggest thumbs up. Surprisingly, the child actors didn't suck. Some of them were pretty good. They don't steal the show, but they manage well. From the older "children", Hayley McFarland again plays a younger person that she really is, but she fooled me.

The characters add a nice contrast to each other. We have the troubled owners of the house and the couple investigating the phenomenon, which gives us a channel to change perspectives as viewers. Nothing in it seems out of place even though we've seen this before. I don't buy the "based on true events" - claim though. I won't laugh at people who do, but it had no effect on my experience or this review.
The script is tight enough, and James Wan's directing is worthy of a couple pats on the back. This movie doesn't treat you like an idiot, and it isn't cheap on what it does. This is pure old-school, both in horror and filmmaking department.
This movie has pretty much everything in it except gore, and it doesn't feel like a crammed-together mosaic even though that's probably what it is. I don't really know what to call this film myself, but I know that it works. It didn't shock me like no other movie, it didn't make me want to weep in the corner, but I was still captured the whole time. I guess I was just waiting for something phenomenally scary to happen and blow my mind, but in the end all I got was a "very good, solid horror movie". It felt like "The Conjuring" climbed effortlessly pretty high on a mountain, but never reached the top. I've seen tons of horror films and I recognize I might be desensitized at this point, but still that magical cherry on top of the cake was missing for me.
"Sinister" and "Insidious" are some of my favorite modern horror movies, and "The Conjuring" is right up there with them. None of them are perfect nor terrifying beyond belief, but I would recommend them all to fans of possession/haunted house genre. "The Conjuring" is probably the most down-to-earth horror film of them all, and thus easier to accept. Even if I didn't get the magical masterpiece I was hoping for, I got a really good one.
I have a habit of being easy on horror movies I like, so if you're not exactly a fan of the genre, feel free to take a couple points off.