Review of Annabelle: Creation (2017) by Kristofer H — 10 Aug 2017

Proper Perspective: As far as a through-and-through horror movie, this is probably my favorite of the year so far. Not to undersell the movie because it is tense, scary, and paced well to keep you cuddled in a ball virtually from start to finish. Let's talk about Annabelle Creation...

Official Synopsis: Several years after the tragic death of their little girl, a doll maker and his wife welcome a nun and several girls from a shuttered orphanage into their home, soon becoming the target of the doll maker's possessed creation, Annabelle.

Plot: Twelve years after the death of their daughter, a married couple welcome in a small lot from a religious orphanage to give them a home. The mystery unravels and the origin of Annabelle is revealed.

Take: I have vague memories of the rushed and forced money grab, "Annabelle." It wasn't good, but I barely remember it. There was a couple and a baby and a demon and things happened, I think. Could be wrong, it might be a pleasant story about an adorable pig sheep herder.

First let's get the negatives out of the way. There are not many, but no movie is perfect.

The dialog in this movie is not going to blow you away. Lots of unnatural conversations and reactions and oversimplified characters. The dialog in an otherwise solid script does the movie no favors. In addition to that all of the adult actors did nothing for me at all. They all seemed like someone either blackmailed them into coming to set or it was their first acting experience, ever. Annabelle's parents, played by seasoned actors Miranda Otto and Anthony LaPaglia, were both offputting and not good. Maybe that was the direction they were given, maybe not, but they were the weakest part of the cast. The lady that played the Sister Charlotte, Stephanie Sigman (Spectre, Narcos) was unnatural in her role.

That is about it for the negatives. All of the kid actors were terrific. The standouts were Lulu Wilson (Ouija Origin of Evil, Deliver us from Evil) as Linda and Talitha Bateman (The 5th Wave, Nine Lives) as Janice. Those two were the center of the movie for the most part and held their own.

Bateman was especially terrific. She has been in other movies with smaller roles, but here she showed layers as a child actor that are just not common. Her character was struck with Polio and struggled to walk with one of her legs. She needs the help of others and a walking cane and eventually a wheel chair throughout the movie. The range of emotion she displayed really stood out and she sold it. Apparently Wilson is carving out a niche as a child actor who is in good sequels to disappointing movies, because like in Ouija Origin of Evil, she is a bright spot in Annabelle Creation.

From a technical standpoint this movie is awesome. David F. Sandberg (Lights Out) has a way of playing with lighting and shadows that make the viewer uncomfortable. Most of the scares in this movie came before the obligatory jump scare moment. Honestly he could have made an equally scary and quality movie without those cheap jump scares and focused on making the audience uncomfortable in the lighting alone.

Overall this movie delivers on the scares, is directed very well by one of the best up-and-coming film makers, the acting is 50/50, and adds to the lore of the Conjuring Universe. This is firmly the third best movie in the Conjuring Universe, but the two movies about Annabelle Creation are horror classics.

Recommendation: Absolutely. If you are a horror fan this is easily the best pure horror movie of the year so far. I do not qualify movies like Split and Get Out as pure horror movies. It is a fun time at the theaters, scary, and does not run long at 100 minutes...

Wait, was that THE NUN in the picture??? THE NUN!!!