CALIFORNIA, Md. – This weekend is the opening of The Nun II, beginning Thursday, September 7th. The latest installment of The Conjuring Universe swoops into theaters like a bat out of hell. IMDB.com describes the plot as “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.”
From the brilliant mind of James Wan, the character of the demon Nun is absolutely horrifying to lay your eyes on. Forget Annabelle and forget demonized children; this twist on the holiness of churches and those who protect them is deeply sinister. Anyone with a strong, religious background will be squirming in their seats at the sight of her (especially Catholics!). Something about a possessed nun is unsettling to the core.
From the hit, the dim lighting, the ominous soundtrack and the slow camera panning is a classic setup for “something bad is about to happen!”. And it all begins inside – you guessed it – a historical church where an innocent child puts away a holy sacrament when the Nun first appears.
Her presence throughout the film constantly builds tension and jump scares. She lurks in the shadows yet overtakes everything on the screen. And she’s quiet… too quiet. Until she’s not. Glass shatters. Fire explodes. Shrieking pierces the night sky. Now, we’re off to figure out how to stop her.
Sister Irene, played by Taissa Farmiga, who battled the Nun in the first installment, is called back into action. Irene also has the gift of “visions,” so she can track the demon and has premonitions that help her on her journey.
A fun film fact to include in this: The Conjuring series is based on real-life couple Lorraine and Ed Warren, a pair of paranormal experts who specialized in demonic possessions and their stories have been told globally. In The Conjuring movies, Vera Farmiga plays Lorraine, and her younger sister, Taissa, plays Sister Irene in The Nun and The Nun II. So, this franchise is a family affair on two levels!
While it does help to watch the first The Nun, it’s unnecessary to enjoy the horror that the second film brings on its own. Irene and another skeptical nun travel from Italy to France at the Vatican’s request. There, Irene meets up with Maurice, or “Frenchie” (who helped her out in the first movie), who doesn’t realize that the demon they thought they had slayed had simply possessed him and is on the hunt for a holy relic to gain more power.
We travel throughout achingly gorgeous, post-WWII Europe in search of the demon Nun, who they find in what was once a monastery but is now a girl’s boarding school. There, we get an onslaught of creaks, cracks, gore, screams, and supernatural horror in thick waves.
Will Irene and her faith save the day and find the relic first, or will the demon get to it quicker and gain more power? You’ll have to watch to see – but the ending leaves us on a bit of a cliffhanger. My money is on The Nun III hitting theaters next fall, where the most significant battle will be fought in the name of all that is good and holy!
Screen it, Stream it or Skip it: Screen it!
This movie is the perfect springboard for the Halloween season takeoff and for all fans of the horror/thriller genre. The sound and visuals will be better on the silver screen than on your TV, so don’t miss the chance to get creeped out before it leaves theaters!
What did you think of the film? Leave your comments below!
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Why is it that Hollywood is always making movies the denigrate Christians and Catholics? That always portrays them as evil?