Film Review: "The Nun II" (2023).

"The greatest evil in The Conjuring Universe." This is The Nun II. This gothic supernatural horror film directed by Michael Chaves, written by Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing, and Akela Cooper. It serves as a sequel to The Nun (2018) and the ninth installment in The Conjuring Universe franchise. 1956 – France. A priest is murdered. An evil is spreading. The sequel to the worldwide smash hit follows Sister Irene as she once again comes face-to-face with Valak, the demon nun.

In August 2017, producer James Wan discussed the possibility of a Nun sequel and what its story may be. In April 2019, it was announced by producer Peter Safran that a sequel was in development. Later that month, Cooper was hired to pen the sequel. In February 2022, Taissa Farmiga stated that she had had discussions with Warner Bros. Pictures to reprise her role from the first film while stating that the restrictions on the film industry as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic had delayed the project. By late April, Wan confirmed that Bonnie Aarons would be reprising her role. Furthermore, Warner Bros. Pictures officially announced the movie as a part of its upcoming slate at the 2022 CinemaCon. In addition, Chaves was hired to direct the sequel. In September, Goldberg and Naing was hired to rewrite the script. By early October, Jonas Bloquet, Storm Reid, and Anna Popplewell rounded out the film's cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced and took place at an abandoned church in Couvent des Prêcheurs, Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, France.

The film stars Farmiga, Bloquet, Reid, Popplewell, and Aarons. Its characters are not as boring as the previous ones, and the fact that Farmiga has trouble moving on from the previous film's event generates a series of very stimulating stress situations.

Chaves has effectively built a thrill ride, but he didn't build the right kind, as its thrills amount to little more than flaccid giggle-inducers. Maybe an immobile doll isn't the right vehicle for frights. In The Conjuring universe, the film is one of the weakest link riding on the success of its previous films. It certainly answers the demon nun's origin story, but it does so with unnecessary froth. Too fixated on the explosive and bombastic properties of shock horror to understand the kind of fear truly effective horror movies leave in their wake. Pounds one creepy moment after another, more concerned with piling up scares than actually trying to make characters the audience can relate to. Perhaps it's the film's inability to provide a clear understanding of its own internal logic. How is a viewer supposed to feel tension if the film's events feel random and inconsequential? For when we discover the true origin of the spirit inside the doll and how it connects with the story of the previous film, the characters cease to make sense in their actions. If we forget the plot, Chaves manages to generate an interesting and macabre atmosphere. But it's far from the quality of The Conjuring.

Simon says The Nun II receives:

Also, see my review for The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It and The Nun.