There is no denying how hot horror has been the last few years and a lot of that box office resurgence belongs to the success of what has become The Conjuring Universe. It all began with The Conjuring in 2013, which present a dramatization of the real-life cases of Ed & Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators, and authors associated with prominent yet controversial cases of haunting. The main series follows their attempts to assist people who find themselves possessed by demonic spirits, while the spin-off films focus on the origins of some of the entities the Warrens have encountered.
I’m not completely sure if the spin-offs were always the plan but The Conjuring Universe has mostly crafted effectively made horror efforts that could easily fall apart because one could argue that a lot of these are little more than cash grabs but there are enough surprises at play to justify their existence. The first of these spin-offs was Annabelle, which focused on the Annabelle doll that was introduced in The Conjuring. Annabelle was a bit of a miss mostly due to pacing issues but seeing the little bread crumbs in place to connect the two worlds was intriguing.
That potential was realized in the prequel Annabelle: Creation, which was a far superior horror film that utilized its atmosphere to generate genuine tension. It was as if the mistakes made in the first film were carefully dissected so that Annabelle: Creation could be the best that it could possibly be.
With the latest film, Annabelle Comes Home, director Gary Dauberman has maintained a lot of the goodwill that was established with Creation. The third outing with one of horror’s creepiest dolls is very atmospheric and there are some top-notch moments of horror that have you on the edge of your seat for most of its runtime. The only thing holding it back from being a great horror film rather than a good one is that it relies too heavily on jump scares as a substitute for real horror. A few of these zingers work but when you have too many, you begin to see them coming and it comes off as a cheap tactic to get a reaction. Thankfully Annabelle Comes Home also has tension on its side and some top-notch lead performances that make you care about the characters.
Annabelle Comes Home begins with a 10-minute prologue that reintroduces us to Ed & Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson & Vera Farmiga). In 1968, the duo brings the Annabelle doll home after claims from two nurses that the doll often performed violent activities in their apartment. On their way home with the doll, Ed is attacked by spirits summoned by the doll but he survives and Annabelle is locked in a sacred glass case in the couple’s artifact room and blessed by Father Gordon to ensure her evil is contained.
The bulk of the film takes place four years later, where the Warrens welcome Mary Ellen (Madison Iseman), who will be in charge of babysitting the couple’s daughter, Judy (McKenna Grace), to their home when they go overnight to investigate another case. Judy doesn’t have many friends to speak of due to the controversial occupation of her parents and she also seems to share similar gifts and can see spirits of her own. Mary Ellen’s best friend, Daniela (Katie Sarife) sees her friend babysitting Judy as an opportunity to get a glimpse at some of the artifacts that the Warrens have locked away, although she has a more personal reason to connect with the afterlife. When she stumbles upon Annabelle locked in her case, circumstances lead to it being opened and it becomes frightfully obvious why Annabelle should never be unleashed.
Annabelle Comes Home is pretty barebones and that turns out to be an asset. Having the bulk of the film taking place primarily in one location and with a limited number of characters adds to the claustrophobia created by the film and it allows you to connect with each character. This isn’t a body count movie, the three leading ladies are all important to the story and they have their own arcs that pay off. The Warrens participation is a bit misleading because most of their scenes were in the trailers and gives the impression they’re around for a while but other than the prologue and the film’s conclusion, the duo is absent. They’re merely the connective tissue used to tie the new characters together and provide you with the reason Annabelle ends up in their possession.
Annabelle Comes Home plays almost like a funhouse horror film where most of the tension is generated by the setup of most of the scenes of the haunting on display. Dauberman definitely knows how to create atmosphere and can surely craft a suitable jump scare moment but he’s at his best just letting the use of his camera and the house do most of the work. The best horror films permeate with tension and Annabelle Comes Home certainly does which makes the heavy use of the jump scares a bit unnecessary.
The acting is top notch and each performer is likable and talented enough to make their characters work. McKenna Grace plays Judy with experience beyond her years and avoids some of the typical horror movie kid tropes that these roles can typically be saddled with. Madison Iseman is instantly likable as Mary Ellen but Katie Sarife was the real surprise as Daniela. You start the film thinking she’s going to be the typical horror film best friend who is up to no good but her arc is certainly the strongest and actually gives the film a bit of an emotional center.
Some have made the argument that this film doesn’t really move things forward for The Conjuring Universe in terms of story but as an exercise in effective atmosphere and thrills, Annabelle Comes Home is a very capable horror film that maintains most of the growth from its predecessor.
