The Conjuring

pookiesboo · 19-07-2013 3:10pm #1

Has anyone seen the trailers for this yet? Its getting good reviews

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1457767/

Sorry heres the trailer, wont watch it though cos I'm home alone tonight but its meant to be scary,:o based on a 'true story' about the Warrens ghosthunters and a case they did

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k10ETZ41q5o

krudler · 19-07-2013 6:46pm

Insidious and Sinister both started well and had some creepy moments but lost it in the final act. This looks like more of the same jump scares letting the music tell you when to jump instead of building actual tension. It's getting good reviews though, 84% positive on rt.com so far. Could be decent but will see.

willmunny1990 · 19-07-2013 8:32pm

Looking forward to this.

As was said Sinister and Insidious started well and had some very good moments but they did wane badly towards the end.

If they learn from the mistakes made in those films then this could prove to be very good.

krudler · 22-07-2013 7:21pm

41 million dollar opening weekend in the states, made twice its budget in one weekend, that's pretty impressive, 85% fresh on rt.com as well 93 positive reviews out of 110, could this be the first actually decent horror movie in a long time?

22-07-2013 8:47pm

Really happy at how well it's performed. word of mouth is excellent, reviews are positive and this is an R rated horror that's rated R not for copious amounts of blood and gore but rather the atmosphere and mood it creates. Looking at the three big releases in the US last weekend, Turbo, Red 2 and R.I.P.D. and The Conjuring destroyed them. The other three cost $350 mill to make and barely scrapped by the $50 mill mark while The Conjuring took in $42 mill and only cost $20 mill. It really is on it's way to being the surprise hit of the summer and I hope that Insidious 2 continues the trend.

Basq · 23-07-2013 12:19am

James Wan has yet to disappoint IMO..

.. but I'm slightly unsure of Insidious 2 (or "Chapter 2").

While I enjoyed the first one, a sequel just seems pointless.

EDIT: Just read Wan's next movie is 'Fast & Furious 7'... seems an odd choice tbh!

TheMilkyPirate · 25-07-2013 10:40pm

Anyone been to see this?

Tipsy McSwagger · 26-07-2013 9:07am

Looks like another crappy James Wan film. The guy is a one trick pony and should have retired after Saw.

Tindie · 28-07-2013 5:07pm

I am looking forward to this movie, I got the feel that showed all the best parts in the trailer

krudler · 28-07-2013 5:19pm

Tipsy McSwagger wrote: »

Looks like another crappy James Wan film. The guy is a one trick pony and should have retired after Saw.

Getting great reviews so am cautiously optimistic, one thing I really wish modern horror filmmakers would stop doing though is using the soundtrack to tell you to be scared or jump, it completely dimishes the effect, silence is the scariest thing about good horror films not a deafening violin screech every time something scary happens.

Zombienosh · 28-07-2013 5:33pm

I do like Wan's films, So I think I'll enjoy this.

Tipsy McSwagger · 29-07-2013 9:57am

krudler wrote: »

Getting great reviews so am cautiously optimistic, one thing I really wish modern horror filmmakers would stop doing though is using the soundtrack to tell you to be scared or jump, it completely dimishes the effect, silence is the scariest thing about good horror films not a deafening violin screech every time something scary happens.

The best thing is silence and not knowing what the fcuk is in the attic, basement, outside a room etc. I watched the first episode in the latest series of Luther and it was genuinely creepy and disturbing.

gmisk · 01-08-2013 1:44pm

Heading to see this tonight.............wish me luck!

Tusky · 01-08-2013 1:55pm

Saw this last night. It's a solid haunted house story, with plenty of scares and some genuinely creepy moments. There's nothing especially original on show and I imagine it will prove to be fairly forgettable, but it's definitely worth a watch.

krudler · 01-08-2013 1:59pm

Tipsy McSwagger wrote: »

The best thing is silence and not knowing what the fcuk is in the attic, basement, outside a room etc. I watched the first episode in the latest series of Luther and it was genuinely creepy and disturbing.

Exactly, the scene where Ellen Burstyn goes into the attic with the candle in The Exorcist is a perfect example, no score just the rustling sound she goes to investigate, and the flame exploding out of nowhere isn't ruined by some screeching score.

gmisk · 02-08-2013 9:50am

Tusky wrote: »

Saw this last night. It's a solid haunted house story, with plenty of scares and some genuinely creepy moments. There's nothing especially original on show and I imagine it will prove to be fairly forgettable, but it's definitely worth a watch.

Pretty much agree with this decent enough mish mash of

the exorcist and amityville not sure if this is a spoiler but hey just in case

I would recommend going to see it without seeing the trailer, it showed a lot of the scares.

gazzer · 02-08-2013 3:21pm

Stupid Odeon Cinema here in Cavan isnt showing it so it looks like a trip to Dublin is in the offing. Dying to see this.

Tindie · 02-08-2013 4:39pm

gazzer wrote: »

Stupid Odeon Cinema here in Cavan isnt showing it so it looks like a trip to Dublin is in the offing. Dying to see this.

I have got two odeon in my local town and not one of them are showing it!

willmunny1990 · 02-08-2013 8:52pm

Just after coming back from this and I found it it very good. It's without doubt one of the best horrors in recent times although that wouldn't be hard in fairness!

It didn't break any new ground but they got the haunted house/exorcism theme right in my opinion. It was genuinely creepy at times with some really good scares.

Nothing original on show here but it's a solid horror that's worth a watch.

fro9etb8j5qsl2 · 02-08-2013 11:35pm

Went to see it tonight, it's definitely the best horror I've seen in a long time. Like one of the previous posters said, it's a good solid ghost story and it doesn't rely on cheap Paranormal Activity-esque scare tactics like most recent horrors. There's a few good spooky moments and it manages to tell the whole story without falling flat near the end (I thought Insidious really failed there).

I was hoping that it would be a good quality frightfest with as much substance as scares because I have followed the work of Ed and Lorraine Warren for years and I was afraid that it would be really hollywood-ified but I was pleasantly surprised. Definitely worth a watch.

03-08-2013 2:37am

gmisk wrote: »

Pretty much agree with this decent enough mish mash of
the exorcist and amityville not sure if this is a spoiler but hey just in case
I would recommend going to see it without seeing the trailer, it showed a lot of the scares.

I assumed that the case the priest wants them to investigate at the end was Amityville and a quick look through the copy of the Amityville novel I use to prop up my broken chair leg has a lot of mentions of Ed and Lorraine Warren and their involvement.

Went to a midnight screening of this and really loved it. It's head and shoulders above pretty much every horror film of the past decade and shows up the Paranormal Activity franchise for the sad, scareless crap that it is. The Conjuring is genuinely unnerving and makes great use small moments to create a real sense of terror. There's a constant sense of foreboding and a real sense of atmosphere to it all. James Wan may not do anything groundbreaking here but he does perfect the haunted house film and I really can't wait to see what he does in Insidious 2.

My only real complaint is that Wan doesn't allow many of the scares to speak for themselves. The use of score to heighten the tension works wonderfully in some moments but there are a few that feel robbed of much of their fright thanks to the musical buildup.

Still it's a small complaint and nowhere near as annoying as the fact that the cinema audience thought it acceptable to sream very loudly before relieved laughter and a little quiet conversation about each scare moments after they happened. I don't think a film has left me scarred but I left the cinema with bruises on my arm similar to those that affected Carolyn Perron. Whereas hers were caused by a demon, mine were the result of a girlfriend who seemed to think that grabbing my arm and squeezing was an acceptable way to express fright.

I think that the best way to experience The Conjuring is on a cold, dreary night when you find yourself all alone in the house. Can imagine it being quite the unsettling viewing experience.

Mike Litoris · 03-08-2013 11:43pm

Copied from my post in the what have you watched thread

Just back from the Conjuring. Wow! I cant think of a more finely crafted horror released in the last 30 years. Pulls heavily from Poltergeist, Amityville and The Exorcist amongst others and does a fine job making it work.

Hopefully the films reception will spawn some more good horrors as, for me, the genre has been terrible for a long long time.

sReq | uTeK · 04-08-2013 12:08am

Just seen it there, definitely the best horror I've seen in the last, well god knows. It's a modern day mix of poltergeist, Amni and the exorcist defo worth the watch.

Goldstein · 04-08-2013 12:57am

Great to see Wan play with the audiences expectations forged from layers of tropes and use them against them. You pick up the auditory cues that something's coming but you sense that your guess will be just enough off target for you to lower your guard. Quite a few moments like that had be smiling in appreciation.

While for me the terror and sense of malevolence didn't quite reach the heights of Insideous during its four or five great moments and I can think of a couple of parts in Intruders that were freakier and more loaded with dread but unlike almost all of its compatriots The Conjuring doesn't fall apart halfway or two thirds of the way through. It's the most complete supernatural horror I've seen in, well ages, probably since Drag Me to Hell which I would place it very close to.

It did borrow from one of the few great scenes in PA3. (The sheet revealing a form for a moment). The Conjuring's version of it was superbly executed, probably my favourite moment in the film and like most real genious scary scenes, came with no real warning or precursor. I couldn't help but think back to the beginning of IT and smile.

If there are a few minor observations I thought he let the audience off the hook a little too often after ratcheting up the tension excellently. A few of the scares were spoiled by surprise at the sudden loud noise rather than the thing that was supposed to scare you which is a hallmark of crap horror these days, but it only happened once or twice

(when the witches feet dropped down from the top right in the basement). Also the exorcism scenes didn't do much for me - the originality of The Last Exorcism still takes that crown in recent movies. I thought some of the atmosphere that had been built up so well went a touch flat at the very end. The doll also never reappeared after the great rocking chair scene which was a bit of an anti-climax considering the amount of emphasis placed on it. Wouldn't be surprised if we see it make a comeback in a sequel though.

But those minor things can be completely overlooked as it was extremely enjoyable and fun to watch - enhanced by the crowd but it would be a great one too as Darko said for a rainy night home alone.

To end on one of countless positives I really liked the

pseudo-fright cut to black ending, there were even a few gasps from a few in the cinema, OMG black!!!

It was a fitting end and summed up the knowing and playful approach evident throughout.

whirlpool · 04-08-2013 10:03am

Went to see this last night. I thought it was excellent. However, I was disappointed by the last 20 minutes of the film. I felt it ended rather abruptly and I wasn't very satisfied by the ending at all. This is actually something I find with a lot of horror films lately..... great first hour and a half, disappointing final twenty mins.

Excellent performances though.

TheFairy · 04-08-2013 8:33pm

gazzer wrote: »

Stupid Odeon Cinema here in Cavan isnt showing it so it looks like a trip to Dublin is in the offing. Dying to see this.

Come down to Enniskillen, great screen and sound, maybe handier than a trip to Dublin?

razorblunt · 05-08-2013 9:22pm

I liked this but maybe I was expecting more from it. I felt it let it self down by having too many reveals of the spirits. I did like the fact it built tension and sometimes didn't pay it off, case in point the "something behind the door" scene, reminds me of my favourite scene of the last few years in Insidious where the little brother is closing the bedroom door while staring at the possessed brother. Nothing happens but it you feel like it will explode at any minute.

On a side note, there's something about the actress that plays the mother I never liked, distracted me a bit from her scenes.

Chris_Heilong · 06-08-2013 12:32am

only positive things to say, a decent hrror that got a very limited release in the odean in coolock(only 2 showings a day) the screen I was in was totally packed, hope this does well.

tunguska · 06-08-2013 12:48pm

Saw it on saturday night and I thought it was the best Horror film I've seen in a fair old while. Im not eaily scared but Jesus Christ this film put the hook in me big time. As has been said already, its nothing new but its done so well and thats what makes it stand out. The acting is the main thing thats exceptional though. Everybody is really good, especially the kids, theyre uniformly excellent. I've always liked patirck wilson, hes never puts a foot wrong acting wise and here he has this calming, reassuring pressence on screen. But this is Vera farmiga's film, she is outstanding and even though she probably wont get nominated by virtue of this being a horror movie, she really does deserve and oscar nod, best supporting actress at least.
All in all a great horror film with great acting thats genuinely scary.

willmunny1990 · 06-08-2013 5:00pm

A sequel to this is already in production.

I wonder what route the sequel will go down, looking at some of the cases the warrens worked on there is definitely potential for another really good horror.

nix · 06-08-2013 7:42pm

Consistent all the way through, unlike most horrors which usually hit a wall. Insidious is my favourite horror in recent years but falls flat at the end, this movie however keeps a nice pace for the entire movie, infact id say its the best pace of a horror film ive ever watched.

Although it just didnt creep me out as much as i had hoped, insidious done a much better job of that...till the end..

krudler · 07-08-2013 10:28pm

Saw this earlier, thought it was excellent. It's not without loads of the usual haunted house movie cliches and often relies on loud bangs for cheapish scares at times but overall I really enjoyed it. James Wan gets how important silence is in a film like this instead of letting the score dictate all the scares.
The cast are all excellent, Vera Farmiga and the kids especially. Thought one of the best scenes of the film was where

one of the kids sees something behind the door and is describing it to the sister was brilliantly done and acted

. Got more than one completely unexpected scare and the audience I saw it with (packed showing at 7pm on a Wednesday) were screaming and laughing nervously during the tense scenes. I think everyone in the place emitted a loud "ohhh shiiiit" when

Farmiga fell through the floorboards into the basement

. As far as modern American horror movies go it's easily one of the best of the last decade, and unlike Insidious and Sinister doesn't lose it in the final act, the tension is kept the entire way through.

SherlockWatson · 08-08-2013 3:38am

krudler wrote: »

Saw this earlier, thought it was excellent. It's not without loads of the usual haunted house movie cliches and often relies on loud bangs for cheapish scares at times but overall I really enjoyed it. James Wan gets how important silence is in a film like this instead of letting the score dictate all the scares.
The cast are all excellent, Vera Farmiga and the kids especially. Thought one of the best scenes of the film was where
one of the kids sees something behind the door and is describing it to the sister was brilliantly done and acted
. Got more than one completely unexpected scare and the audience I saw it with (packed showing at 7pm on a Wednesday) were screaming and laughing nervously during the tense scenes. I think everyone in the place emitted a loud "ohhh shiiiit" when
Farmiga fell through the floorboards into the basement
. As far as modern American horror movies go it's easily one of the best of the last decade, and unlike Insidious and Sinister doesn't lose it in the final act, the tension is kept the entire way through.

That was hardly the 6.50 in the odeon Limerick? Was mental busy in there today.

Really enjoyed it though and haven't said that about a horror movie in years.

krudler · 08-08-2013 9:41am

SherlockWatson wrote: »

That was hardly the 6.50 in the odeon Limerick? Was mental busy in there today.

Really enjoyed it though and haven't said that about a horror movie in years.

Yes! Its the first time I was there since it changed from Storm, usually go to Showtime. The prices and broken aircon put me off going there for ages but it was only a fiver a ticket. The queue was gigantic on the way out as well.

SherlockWatson · 08-08-2013 1:04pm

krudler wrote: »

Yes! Its the first time I was there since it changed from Storm, usually go to Showtime. The prices and broken aircon put me off going there for ages but it was only a fiver a ticket. The queue was gigantic on the way out as well.

I'd swear by the place big time since it has become The Odeon.

We went one day and the projector went down, they ended up giving us a refund and four vouchers for free movies, the customer service in their is fantastic since rebranded and the Odeon card is deadly.

The movie was wickedly cliched, but it worked, and was definitely one of the jumpiest movies I've seen in a while, reactions of the audience made it quite funny aswell!

krudler · 08-08-2013 1:18pm

SherlockWatson wrote: »

I'd swear by the place big time since it has become The Odeon.

We went one day and the projector went down, they ended up giving us a refund and four vouchers for free movies, the customer service in their is fantastic since rebranded and the Odeon card is deadly.

The movie was wickedly cliched, but it worked, and was definitely one of the jumpiest movies I've seen in a while, reactions of the audience made it quite funny aswell!

Yeah I might visit it more now that it seems to have gone up quality wise, long as the aircon isn't still knackered in the other screens.

Yeah there were some very effective jump scares, the

old woman on top of the wardrobe

was a great one. Mostly it was just tension built really well throughout, great performances too solid cast.

SherlockWatson · 08-08-2013 1:25pm

krudler wrote: »

Yeah I might visit it more now that it seems to have gone up quality wise, long as the aircon isn't still knackered in the other screens.

Yeah there were some very effective jump scares, the
old woman on top of the wardrobe
was a great one. Mostly it was just tension built really well throughout, great performances too solid cast.

Some of the imagery used was brilliant aswell, for instance

When Ed went running up the stairs and his daughter was standing at the top

was very freaky.

If you do pick up the Odeon card the 9.99 deal is worth it if you'd go to the cinema a lot, you get double points for a month and if your going with a crowd who don't have cards you get Mega points :pac:

meoklmrk91 · 08-08-2013 4:41pm

I really loved this, I'm not the kind who is easily scared but I will honestly say that this scared the living day lights out of me and I loved every minute of it. As has been mentioned Vera Farmiga is wonderful in it, and the rest of the acting was great too, no hamming it up from anyone, the kids were great, especially the girl who played Christine.

I was a little worried going in, Patrick Wilson and James Wan, I hated insidious. For me this is probably the best modern horror there is, I can't think of anything else that stands up to it that has come out in my life time, I'm 22.

Zombienosh · 09-08-2013 9:09pm

Saw this today and thought it was awesome. Best horror in a long while, I'm really liking Wans work. Each film has some slight overlap of the previous i.e the birds ala dark skies, but this doesn't bother me, it's done to great effect. This had maybe some horror cliché elements but I think they were done so well no one could hold that against him.
The effects were awesome too, Loved the looks and make up.
And of course there had to be

a god damn creepy ass doll

catallus · 11-08-2013 3:02am

I'm sorry, but I can't understand the love for this film on thread.

It is a bad bad film.

It sets the bar so low, beneath sinister etc.. and continues on from there.

A very very bad film, laughable, really.

A sort of mid-week Sci-Fi movie.

Not worth seeing. The whole thing is face-palmingly bad.

SherlockWatson · 11-08-2013 4:24am

catallus wrote: »

I'm sorry, but I can't understand the love for this film on thread.

It is a bad bad film.

It sets the bar so low, beneath sinister etc.. and continues on from there.

A very very bad film, laughable, really.

A sort of mid-week Sci-Fi movie.

Not worth seeing. The whole thing is face-palmingly bad.

Some very good details argued I must say.

Charlie19 · 11-08-2013 4:37am

catallus wrote: »

I'm sorry, but I can't understand the love for this film on thread.

It is a bad bad film.

It sets the bar so low, beneath sinister etc.. and continues on from there.

A very very bad film, laughable, really.

A sort of mid-week Sci-Fi movie.

Not worth seeing. The whole thing is face-palmingly bad.

Horror movies just might not be for you, unless you believe in the paranormal and find this a bit far fetched.

catallus · 11-08-2013 5:26am

SherlockWatson wrote: »

Some very good details argued I must say.

Charlie19 wrote: »

Horror movies just might not be for you, unless you believe in the paranormal and find this a bit far fetched.

I watched a very good horror movie recently, We Need To Talk About Kevin.

There was nothing supernatural about it, just a simple terrifying story.

A Conjuring takes the most basic horror principles and manages to make them not scary; not even jumpy scary.

I had the misfortune of watching this in a cinema full of pretend bored teenagers who laughed and screeched throughout; but the whole film was just embarrassingly bad.

Mike Litoris · 11-08-2013 10:43am

catallus wrote: »

I watched a very good horror movie recently, We Need To Talk About Kevin.

There was nothing supernatural about it, just a simple terrifying story.

A Conjuring takes the most basic horror principles and manages to make them not scary; not even jumpy scary.

I had the misfortune of watching this in a cinema full of pretend bored teenagers who laughed and screeched throughout; but the whole film was just embarrassingly bad.

Which "horrors" would you consider good? We need to talk about Kevin isn't horror.

upstairs for coffee · 11-08-2013 11:48am

Ron Livingstone from Office Space and Band of Brothers is in it! Delighted

krudler · 11-08-2013 12:09pm

catallus wrote: »

I watched a very good horror movie recently, We Need To Talk About Kevin.

There was nothing supernatural about it, just a simple terrifying story.

A Conjuring takes the most basic horror principles and manages to make them not scary; not even jumpy scary.

I had the misfortune of watching this in a cinema full of pretend bored teenagers who laughed and screeched throughout; but the whole film was just embarrassingly bad.

that's not a horror movie

catallus · 11-08-2013 1:56pm

krudler wrote: »

that's not a horror movie

Oh yes it is

It had the decency to build up tension and dread at least, and to pay off the viewer with some sort terrible outcome.

The Conjuring is a sad sorry excuse of a movie in any genre. I'm baffled how anyone can like this. I must do an actual review of it.

It's awful! I was sitting there wondering was it some sort of joke!

krudler · 11-08-2013 3:00pm

catallus wrote: »

Oh yes it is

It had the decency to build up tension and dread at least, and to pay off the viewer with some sort terrible outcome.

The Conjuring is a sad sorry excuse of a movie in any genre. I'm baffled how anyone can like this. I must do an actual review of it.

It's awful! I was sitting there wondering was it some sort of joke!

A thriller maybe, but it's definitely not a horror film.

catallus · 11-08-2013 3:02pm

krudler wrote: »

A thriller maybe, but it's definitely not a horror film.

It is more of a horror film than the conjuring

SherlockWatson · 11-08-2013 3:14pm

catallus wrote: »

It is more of a horror film than the conjuring

Living your entire life under a bridge must be scary though?

KilOit · 11-08-2013 3:52pm

catallus wrote: »

I'm sorry, but I can't understand the love for this film on thread.

It is a bad bad film.

It sets the bar so low, beneath sinister etc.. and continues on from there.

A very very bad film, laughable, really.

A sort of mid-week Sci-Fi movie.

Not worth seeing. The whole thing is face-palmingly bad.

It's ok to be scared.

Just watched it and thought it was excellent, a lot better than sinister as a whole but sinister i found to be amazing for the first 3 quarters

The Conjuring

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