Despite a pattern of irrational behavior from those
confronting the figurine-haunting demon at the center of this horror prequel,
there are some old-fashioned shivers awaiting those grown viewers willing to
brave its fleeting scenes of graphic gore. In 1950s California, a group of
displaced orphans (most prominently Talitha Bateman and Lulu Wilson) shepherded
by a nun (Stephanie Sigman) are offered refuge in the spooky home of a
dollmaker (Anthony LaPaglia) and his invalid wife (Miranda Otto) both of whom are
still overcome by grief following the death of their young daughter (Samara
Lee) in a tragic car accident a dozen years before. Along with the
counter-scriptural concept that infernal fiends can steal human souls, director
David F. Sandberg’s follow-up to the 2014 original — itself a spinoff of “The
Conjuring” franchise — features an incidental portrayal of Catholicism so
wildly inaccurate that it will annoy and distract the faithful.
Watch out for: A distorted
presentation of Catholic faith practices, mostly stylized but briefly very
bloody violence, numerous gruesome images and at least one mild oath.
Rated: L, limited adult
audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling;
MPAA: R
© Arlington Catholic Herald 2017