The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It

It's a different Conjuring, trying and innovating, not only in the story (no haunted house here) but also in the use of camera/direction, where we feel that we have a new director and with a different identity (good).

The scaries don't work as well as in the first two films and the new characters aren't as intriguing as The Nun or Annabelle, so, even if we still have very strong horror moments, we don't feel the same tension as we felt in the previous two. The Warrens do, once again, a fantastic job and I loved some references to The Shining or A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Personally, I still think the 2nd is the best Conjuring by a large margin (scarier, frenetic, fantastic direction, editing, atmosphere, London). The first one isn't as scary as the second, but it's really well executed with a very strong plot. This one is the weakest, but it's still interesting to see the couple in a different type of story and it's still a pretty solid horror film.

NO SPOILERS! Weakest of the series and and I have to believe the missing piece was director James Wan. The scares were way too predictable, the script felt one note and even though I went in cold I could still see the ending a mile away. Solid turns by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as they have always done but still even they couldn't elevate this one.

Super predictable jump scares, not nearly as scary as the other movies, it's so easy to tell when something scary is about to happen but when it does it's not even really scary.

But I will say the acting is great and the story is told pretty well, this however has to be one of the most embellished of the movies yet. It's honestly more of an action thriller than a horror movie.

As I said, the film doesn't have the same power and unique feel as Wan's 2, but it is a nice continuation in the franchise with an intriguing story that does delve into the crime drama genre along with giving us the scares we come to know. You can tell Wan still was involved with certain camera works and scare concepts much like he was with the mediocre yet entraining curse of LaLlarona which this director Michael Chaves debuted on. While he doesn't fill Wan's shoes at all, he was able to follow a certain format for this particular franchise to move forward though at dragging pace at times.

The actors are all very good as usual and the duo of Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as the Warren's are phenomenal bursting with emotion as always. They carry this film completely. The effects are decently executed and the cgi looks near flawless. Some of the scares are a mixed bag of ambition and some are tremendously cliche, but they all do their jobs for the horror aspect. The ominous settings are fantastic and add rich environment for the frights to flourish.

Overall it's an effort that felt satisfying to see the premier franchise continue, but there's a definitive void without Wan's genius eye.

Everyone who's complaining that they're too much story and not enough scares, are you kidding? Story and character is the reason why we care about the stakes-that's where drama, tension and horror comes from. If it was all jump scares and lacking in story (the movie Winchester comes to mind), I guarantee y'all would've been even more disappointed. But if that's your thing, you'll probably be just as entertained by a jack in the box. While remaining faithful to the Conjuring universe, I appreciated that this third movie explored new territory so it wasn't just a repeat. It is a quality addition to the series with good production value, and much more thoughtfully-written than the spin offs. It's a win for what it is considering the impossible task the writer and the director had of pleasing all these harsh fans who couldn't even tell you what they liked about the first two conjuring movies other than "it was scary."

sorry if that's you and I read you for filth; go ahead and downvote my review ;-)