The Movie Review Nobody Asked For: Annabelle
I'm bringing it back from the dead!!! First post in over a year! And it's to review a movie, go figure.
Since I reviewed The Conjuring when it came out, I thought it only appropriate that I give this prequel the ol' once over. Unlike the first film, the Warrens were not a presence at all. They are mentioned in dialogue once and then are part of the epilogue but they have no impact on the story. This was good and bad. The story is an original tale of the up-until-now unknown origins of the Annabelle doll. The first time the Warrens were involved with the doll was with the two nurses we see at the beginning of the first movie. They only have speculation as to where she came from before that and this film was based on those speculations. That being said, I like their characters and I wold have liked to see at least a cameo or something.
Now, as for the movie itself, I quite enjoyed it! As with The Conjuring, this movie is set in the recent past of the late 60's-early 70's and it is pretty immersive. Again, the costuming and set and prop design was all spot-on. There were a few anachronisms here and there but they weren't distracting. The thing that really grounded the timeline for me was at the very beginning, the lead female, named Mia, is watching a report on tv about the Charles Manson cult after she mentions that a neighbor's daughter has "run off to join the hippies." This detail stuck with me throughout the rest of the story and really hit home for the setting
This was definitely a horror movie. It had a few good jump scares and trick shots that made my heart beat faster. Most of the really big scares from the movie were ruined because I already saw them in the trailer but there were a few that really got me! Also, unfortunately, there was a group of obviously underaged girls sitting in front of me in the theater so I didn't get to enjoy the scary bits as much as I would have liked. I'll have to go see it again.
One of the things I liked best about this movie's predecessor was the good old fashioned slow burn and this one did not disappoint on that front. For a good portion of the movie, we are left wondering what is going on. The characters even decline information about the circumstances surround their plight and it leaves the viewer completely in the dark! It is until you've guessed what's happening before it is even partially explained. However, after you know and the proverbial s*** is hitting the fan, it lays it on really thick. It starts spoon feeding the message to you in healthy, well-lit chunks. The big bad of the movie is (SPOILER!!) a demon. And we get to know his face. There is one shot that works really really well with this but everything else is just extra and kinda kills the terror a little.
The ending is good and conclusive and sets up the events for the opening shots of The Conjuring well. And, there is a little Easter egg in the epilogue that made me happy. The nurse's mother is in a curio shop and picked up the Annabelle doll. As the camera pans, you can see a Raggedy Anne doll sitting high on a shelf in the background. Now, being a dork, I know that the real Annabelle doll, which is still to this day sitting in a locked cabinet in Loraine Warren's museum, is a Raggedy Anne. It was stylistic choice to change the style of doll to the creepy thing we have now one, because it is freakin terrifying to look at, and two, Raggedy Anne is a trademarked design and the company that holds that trademark didn't want their toy being seen as an object of horror. I just thought it was a cool nod to the inspiration of the story.
Now, we can only hope that the true sequel to the Warrens' story is still in the works! I would love to see more chapters from this book!
Since I reviewed The Conjuring when it came out, I thought it only appropriate that I give this prequel the ol' once over. Unlike the first film, the Warrens were not a presence at all. They are mentioned in dialogue once and then are part of the epilogue but they have no impact on the story. This was good and bad. The story is an original tale of the up-until-now unknown origins of the Annabelle doll. The first time the Warrens were involved with the doll was with the two nurses we see at the beginning of the first movie. They only have speculation as to where she came from before that and this film was based on those speculations. That being said, I like their characters and I wold have liked to see at least a cameo or something.
Now, as for the movie itself, I quite enjoyed it! As with The Conjuring, this movie is set in the recent past of the late 60's-early 70's and it is pretty immersive. Again, the costuming and set and prop design was all spot-on. There were a few anachronisms here and there but they weren't distracting. The thing that really grounded the timeline for me was at the very beginning, the lead female, named Mia, is watching a report on tv about the Charles Manson cult after she mentions that a neighbor's daughter has "run off to join the hippies." This detail stuck with me throughout the rest of the story and really hit home for the setting
This was definitely a horror movie. It had a few good jump scares and trick shots that made my heart beat faster. Most of the really big scares from the movie were ruined because I already saw them in the trailer but there were a few that really got me! Also, unfortunately, there was a group of obviously underaged girls sitting in front of me in the theater so I didn't get to enjoy the scary bits as much as I would have liked. I'll have to go see it again.
One of the things I liked best about this movie's predecessor was the good old fashioned slow burn and this one did not disappoint on that front. For a good portion of the movie, we are left wondering what is going on. The characters even decline information about the circumstances surround their plight and it leaves the viewer completely in the dark! It is until you've guessed what's happening before it is even partially explained. However, after you know and the proverbial s*** is hitting the fan, it lays it on really thick. It starts spoon feeding the message to you in healthy, well-lit chunks. The big bad of the movie is (SPOILER!!) a demon. And we get to know his face. There is one shot that works really really well with this but everything else is just extra and kinda kills the terror a little.
The ending is good and conclusive and sets up the events for the opening shots of The Conjuring well. And, there is a little Easter egg in the epilogue that made me happy. The nurse's mother is in a curio shop and picked up the Annabelle doll. As the camera pans, you can see a Raggedy Anne doll sitting high on a shelf in the background. Now, being a dork, I know that the real Annabelle doll, which is still to this day sitting in a locked cabinet in Loraine Warren's museum, is a Raggedy Anne. It was stylistic choice to change the style of doll to the creepy thing we have now one, because it is freakin terrifying to look at, and two, Raggedy Anne is a trademarked design and the company that holds that trademark didn't want their toy being seen as an object of horror. I just thought it was a cool nod to the inspiration of the story.
Now, we can only hope that the true sequel to the Warrens' story is still in the works! I would love to see more chapters from this book!
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