Swan's 2017 Movie Adventures

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I really can't bring myself to watch The Conjuring because i hate The Warrens, sure it's a good film though. Films about The Warrens and The Iceman are the only films i can think of that i can't bring my self to watch for really weird, petty reasons.



I really can't bring myself to watch The Conjuring because i hate The Warrens, sure it's a good film though. Films about The Warrens and The Iceman are the only films i can think of that i can't bring my self to watch for really weird, petty reasons.
Yeah some of my friends think the same as you... they think The Warrens is a fraud and it's non-logical etc. I like to believe what they did was true but I'm 50/50 on the case. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga portrayal of them is still great though.



I really can't bring myself to watch The Conjuring because i hate The Warrens, sure it's a good film though. Films about The Warrens and The Iceman are the only films i can think of that i can't bring my self to watch for really weird, petty reasons.
Yeah, I'm the same way, I don't believe any of this stuff really happened in the sense that it was actually spirits. I've always sided with the skeptics. But I think if you can pretend for 2 hours, it's a great ride, and Wilson and Farmiga are terrific in their roles.



Master of My Domain
Hmmm, I might be interested in The Conjuring now. Like Swan the ads made me think that it was a over-hyped cynical studio horror flick, guess I could be wrong.
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My advice is to watch it alone in the middle of the night.
... in the centre of a dark, desolate wood with just a feral owl for company



You liked Wilson and Farmiga, that's a good thing. Because the sequel seems to explore and go deeper into them as characters and on a more emotional level. Now go watch that sequel! Keep your hopes low, a lot of people didn't like the sequel... but hope you will.

Oh yeah, and SO GLAD you liked the movie, Swan!!!! You made my day too.



Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed -

(Terence Fisher, 1969)

[NEW WATCH]



I liked this well enough but unfortunately it felt like it was reusing a lot of stuff from the ones prior to it. A lot of people really like this one, so I feel like I'm missing out or wrong or something, but I actually kind of struggled through it, which is a bit odd considering my love for Hammer. Hopefully I’ll like it better next time I see it.

The Conjuring 2 -
+
(James Wan, 2016)

[NEW WATCH]



The rating is a cautious one because I am positive I’ll like this more with repeat viewings, just like I did with the first.

Alas, I’m not sure I’ll ever think it’s as good as the first. There’s something about the craft and the score in that one that this film was lacking. I still remember the eerie stringy score of the first Conjuring, while I’ve already forgotten this one. I thought it was a bit lacking in that creepy factor that the first was so, so good at creating. I wasn’t a fan of the gimmicky chop-cuts in the opening Amityville bit, either (a very minor criticism but one that does cheapen it a bit). And I was a bit sad to see more CGI in this one, which even if there was some in the first it wasn't noticeable.

By the way…

WARNING: spoilers below
Why the hell did the demon tell Lorraine it’s name, when that gives her power over it?

I don’t mean to be overly critical. That stuff may wash away when I see this again. I thought at the start when the sleepwalking stuff came up that it would be a complete rehash of the first. And while it did reuse some stuff, for the most part it presented enough new ideas that I was satisfied. I loved that they went to London with this one. It kept it from feeling like a mainstream American horror film, which even though these two films are, they are just too good to even be considered alongside tripe like Annabelle. I also loved the blue tint of this one, which gave it a different character to the first with it’s brown tint. I thought the casting of the characters was just as good as the casting in the first one.

Of course, the storytelling was pretty damn solid here as well. One thing I thought it did better than the first one, and I’m echoing MM here, is how it gave Ed and Lorraine that emotional depth that there wasn’t much of for those particular characters in the first. I loved the last moment. By the way, how freaking great is Vera Farmiga? Love her.

It's a bit funny that in real life, I would be siding with the skeptics in these movies. So I guess it's a testament to Wan that he's able to make me care about two kooks like Ed and Lorraine.

So while I have some criticisms, there was a lot to like here too. I don’t think I can come to appreciate it on the same level as the first, which frankly is something of a horror masterwork. But I am confident I will like it even better the second time around - and who knows, maybe it WILL become a masterpiece in my eyes like the first? Stranger things have happened.



Nice to see that you like it !

about the CGI thing (if you talking about The Crooked Man) it's a real person that play the character
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Nice to see that you like it !

about the CGI thing (if you talking about The Crooked Man) it's a real person that play the character
No I actually loved the Crooked Man stuff. It was subtle, but there was noticeable CGI with the Demon Nun, and it kind of turned me off. But it's no big deal.

I think those criticisms are minor stuff. I can see myself forgiving and forgetting next time I see it. I had criticisms about the first but what it did well it did so freaking well that I just didn't care.



Actually, one of the best moments was the intro of the Crooked Man. With the dog. That was f*cking awesome.



No I actually loved the Crooked Man stuff. It was subtle, but there was noticeable CGI with the Demon Nun, and it kind of turned me off. But it's no big deal.

I think those criticisms are minor stuff. I can see myself forgiving and forgetting next time I see it. I had criticisms about the first but what it did well it did so freaking well that I just didn't care.
it's awesome that you finally like some of James Wan stuff bro! One of my fav director



You wrote The Conjuring not The Conjuring 2. Fail
Shut up and thank you.

it's awesome that you finally like some of James Wan stuff bro! One of my fav director
Yeah I'm keen on revisiting Insidious now.



28 days...6 hours...42 minutes...12 seconds
Glad you're on the right side of The Conjuring debate now. Great horror flick.

As far as sequels go...and more so, horror sequels, The Conjuring 2 is great!!!



I haven't seen The Conjuring. You're saying it's a masterpiece? Maybe I should watch it...
Swan considers Hostel 2 a masterpiece... better not rely too much on him.

Kidding, awesome you enjoyed The Conjuring 2, Swan! I, too, wasn't quite sure how to feel about the sequel and maybe or maybe not, is it as good or better than the first. I liked it a lot and I think Wan did a surprisingly good job matching the hype and making a competent horror sequel.

There were things I thought he did better this time around and things he did less great with than the first. Indeed the score was better in the first and the story was tighter and less torn in different directions, yet I think Wan had more control with how he wanted to film and present his horror and story. He really feels so comfortable now in the horror universe; lightning a scene, setting up a scene etc. And the dramatic core was better than the first imo.

I think I'll like the sequel more on rewatches and I think you will too. Looking forward to your coming thoughts of the Insidious films. Great creepy hell rides (the first two)!



I agree MM. I think what really saves the sequel is, as you say, that dramatic core. But for me, the strengths of the first outweigh the strengths of the second. Actually, I did feel the first film had a strong dramatic core, too. It dealt with the main family rather than the Warren's, but I still felt it. I thought the "day at the beach" thing was a nice little touch to give it emotional resonance. Though I think the sequel might have technically had a stronger dramatic center, I felt it more with the first, if that makes sense.

I am already excited to revisit The Conjuring 2, just to see how I like it the second time. Need to space out the viewings a bit, though.

Swan considers Hostel 2 a masterpiece... better not rely too much on him.
I know you're kidding and yet I still agree no one should rely on me for recs. Alas, I do think Eli Roth is to modern gory horror what James Wan is to modern atmospheric horror. I know a lot of people hate gore, but like I said in my Conjuring write-up... I am not a desensitized person, so I enjoy the thrill ride that gory and atmospheric horror both provide me.



Ouija: Origin of Evil -
+
(Mike Flanagan, 2016)

[NEW WATCH]



Thought this was a really wonderful horror flick, but then Flanagan has impressed me so much since I saw Oculus when it came out. His strong suit is definitely storytelling in my opinion, craft-wise these films are nothing extraordinary but on a story level he is constantly subverting expectations, at least my expectations, and providing incredibly taut horror entertainment. The girl who played Doris was absolutely the standout here, her performance was fantastic. I’ve heard doing monologues or scenes by yourself can be incredibly difficult, so I imagine the “strangulation” monologue would be challenging even for an adult actress. But this girl aced it.

By the way, I liked this more than Hush. While I think that was another excellent film by Flanagan in many ways, I do think I overrated it, as much as I appreciate it. Ultimately though, I'm just glad we have a mainstream horror director around like Flanagan.