The most interesting of the Annabelle movies. This film centers around Judy, the Warren's daughter, who we've only seen small glimpses of throughout the previous films. This film also shows us a mixture of old but loved characters and new fresh ones. Every character in this film is surprisingly likable by the films end despite how they are perceived at first, which is an interesting choice but not one im mad about. Both fans of the actual Warren's and fans of the Conjuring franchise are treated to sneak peeks into the backstory of multiple artifacts previously only briefly shown in past films. I especially loved that they included the spirit from the Black Shuck case as that's my personal favorite case the Warrens investigated. I was also a big fan of the designs for both the Ferryman and Mathus. While they did use a bit of CGI to make the designs come to life they used mainly prosthetics and makeup and as anyone who has been following this blog for a while knows, I absolutely LOVE practical effects. This film has just a fantastic eye for the finer details, which makes me want to watch it again and again to see what new things I notice. This has been my favorite of the franchise thus far, and I hope the next few films don't disappoint
This movie sort of belittles and confuses the events in ANNABELLE, even though they show how they are connected. It has classic elements like the dichotomy of the innocence of children and the malevolence of demons but is frankly uninspired. Slightly better than Annabelle proper but only because it had better scares and acting. Other than reiterating that Annabelle is a conduit, they muddy the waters of what the entity wants and therefore the motivations to its actions.
⭐⭐.5
Trigger Warning Child Abuse (by Demons)
Orphans go to live in a house with the parents of a dead girl. The mother is hidden away having suffered an accident and the father used to be a rather famous doll maker (he crafted Annabelle, she is the only of her kind, making her extremely rare and once she is out of his hands she would be a collectors item that would cost a small fortune and not go to the hands of common folk so I have no idea how the couple from ANNABELLE get her but I digress).
Upon arrival, spooky happenings are afoot. A girl crippled by polo is the victim, she is led to find Annabelle and is tricked into freeing her. The doll is a lot more present and creepy in this film as is our dear demon friend. Exposition happens before the apparition vomits goo into the girls mouth (just as they did in The Conjuring) and she is possessed and made to stalk the house guests knife in hand. The parents are brutally murdered while the girls barely make it out alive.
The possessed girl goes missing then pops up in an orphanage where a young couple adopt her. This turns out to be the couple from the beginning of ANNABELLE whose daughter (the once orphan) joins a cult and murders her adoptive parents. As a not-so-subtle nod to the real Annabelle, the couple give the girl an actual Raggedy Anne doll which just leads me to more confusion of what universe we are in, the movie universe or our universe? The whole connection from Annabelle to Annabelle: Creation puts into question how the possession process works, how they got that which they were not offered, if the demon in Annabelle is just one or many… and a lot more taxing and unsatisfying questions that took a lot from the film and made me feel like I’d been had.
ANNABELLE: CREATION REWATCH
Why is the devil still using the little kid form after he's been found out? Why not just be the devil? If he is going to start right away being an evil fuck and do things that the little girl would never do then why pretend to be her anymore? What is the point? How in the hell did the entity rip Mrs. Mullins plain in half? What kind of poltergeist activity is that? That is just straight up what a bear does. Also how did that happen silently and with so little blood all over everything in the room? I am more baffled than I am afraid. Oh, wait, am I supposed to believe that the child tore a grown woman in half in less than a minute? Shenanigans!
The entity is so strong in film (especially compared to how strong they are in ANNABELLE), and it seems to straight up be the Devil himself? Full bodied apparitions and everything multiple times. Wack! What, does he suddenly go for a more gentle approach in the future (since the first movie is chronologically after this one)? Why is he so strong here? OH. SO THE DOLL IS JUST A CONDUIT FOR EVIL. Yeah, right, sure, whatever. It’s like they weren’t even trying. I rolled my eyes so hard when the priest said that. I mean honestly.
The connection at the end felt very thin after the rest of the movie was wild. Also the doll they use in this movie is cute in some frames but mostly just goofy looking and not like she wants to do harm. And the very end is a little reminder that the next movie to watch is THE NUN because there is nothing THE CONJURING universe movies like to do more than bring up that old bag.
