Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016)

In 1967 Los Angeles, a widowed mother and her daughters add a new stunt to bolster their seance scam business by inviting an evil presence into their home, not realizing how dangerous it is.

Director:

Mike Flanagan

Writers:

Mike Flanagan, Jeff Howard

Stars:

Elizabeth Reaser, Lulu Wilson, Annalise Basso

2 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Annalise Basso	...	Lina Zander
Elizabeth Reaser	...	Alice Zander
Lulu Wilson	...	Doris Zander
Henry Thomas	...	Father Tom
Parker Mack	...	Mikey
Halle Charlton	...	Ellie
Alexis G. Zall	...	Betty
Doug Jones	...	Ghoul Marcus
Kate Siegel	...	Jenny Browning
Sam Anderson	...	Mr. Browning
Chelsea Gonzalez	...	Gloria
Lincoln Melcher	...	Jack
Nicholas Keenan	...	Walter
Michael Weaver	...	Roger Zander
Ele Keats	...	Ellie's Mom

Storyline

In 1967 Los Angeles, a young widow named Alice Zander works out of her suburban home as a spiritual medium, accompanied by her daughters, 15-year-old Paulina "Lina" and 9-year old Doris. The family is still reeling over the recent death of Roger, Alice's husband and the kids' father. At Lina's suggestion, Alice incorporates a Ouija board into her readings. While trying out the board, she unknowingly contacts a spirit named Marcus that begins to possess Doris. Alice receives a notice that the bank intends to foreclose on their home. Doris contacts the board for help, believing she is communicating with her dead father. The spirit leads her to a secret compartment behind the basement wall containing a pouch of cash. When she gives the money to her mother, the family has an Ouija session, believing they can contact Roger. When the board answers a question only Roger would know the answer to, a thrilled Alice begins believing that they are in contact with her dead husband..

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Plot Keywords:

prequel | seance | possession | ouija board | schoolgirl uniform | 

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Taglines:

When you talk to the other side, you never know who will be listening.

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for disturbing images, terror and thematic elements

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lulu Wilson (Doris Zander), Elizabeth Reaser (Alice Zander), Kate Siegel (Jenny Browning) & Henry Thomas (Father Tom) also worked together on The Haunting of Hill House (2018) as Young Shirley, Shirley Crain, Theodora Crain & Young Hugh Crain respectively.

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Goofs

In the first movie, to which this is a prequel, this film's events are stated to have occurred in the late 1940s or early 1950s - an onscreen newspaper article dates them to 1952. This movie is explicitly set in 1967.

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Quotes

Doris Zander: Wanna hear something cool?
Mikey: Sure.
Doris Zander: Do you know what it feels like to be strangled to death? First, you feel the pressure in your throat. Your eyes water, and you start to taste something very, very sour in your mouth. Then it's like someone lights a match right in the middle of your chest, and that fire grows. It fills your lungs, and your throat, and all the way behind your eyes. And finally, that fire turns to ice; like pins and needles of ice are sticking into your fingers, your toes, your arms....
[...]

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Crazy Credits

The end credits for the main crew and cast include one letter of each name circled in blue, as if selected on an Ouija board. However, the series of selected letters do not spell any word or message.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Horror Movies That Were Surprisingly Good (2017)

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Soundtracks

Where You Are Is Where I'm Going to Be
Written by Elijah Honey (as Paul Robert Cufflin)
Performed by Elijah Honey
Courtesy of Crucial Music Corporation

User Reviews

Better Than The First

It's rare to find a sequel that surpasses the first these days, but Ouija: Origin of Evil manages to just that. Not that it was a very tough feat considering the original was one of the most lame-brained movies I've seen in a while, but Origin of Evil improves upon its predecessor tenfold - just not enough to make it really worthwhile.

It's obvious that Mike Flannigan is on his way to becoming one of our true masters of horror, but this film seems more like a paycheck movie for him and it shows. He does the best he can with the tepid material, but ends up using the old "distorted faces/mouths with rolled back eyes" effect a few too many times and it quickly becomes tedious.

Like all of Flannigan's films, it's wonderfully well cast and beautifully put together. I just wish they'd spent a little bit more time with the script. You might be better off watching Flannigan's Hush, Absentia, Gerald's Game, Occulus, or The Haunting of Hill House.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Instagram

Country:

USA

Language:

English Ukrainian

Release Date:

21 October 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ouija: Origin of Evil

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$9,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$14,065,500, 23 October 2016

Gross USA:

$35,144,505

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$81,705,746

Company Credits

Production Co:

Allspark Pictures, Blumhouse Productions, Dentsu

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos DTS SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1