Movie Review: 2016 'The Conjuring 2'

Rating: ★★★★★

Not many horror flicks are based on real-life stories, but "The Conjuring 2," takes off where "The Conjuring," left us as real ghost busters couple Lorraine and Ed Warren (played by Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson) whom are brought in by the Catholic church to see if the Amityville home, which is considered the most haunted home in America, was really haunted and not a hoax. The Warren's have a short, but memorable stay at the Amityville property and afterwards Lorraine tells Ed that she wants time off from helping homeowners with their haunted homes. And she has a really good reason for it.

Before their next haunting, the Warrens settle in their home with their daughter. Ed starts to have dreams that won't seem to leave him alone and starts to paint his visions. When Lorraine sees Ed's paintings, the Amityville experience reoccurs.

Although they had decided to stay away from any haunting, a family in England needs their help and the Catholic church has again asked the Warrens to access the home. So, near Christmas the Warrens travel to England to help a single mother and her four children. It's her youngest daughter Janet (Madison Wolfe) that is most troubled and has been the victim of most of the scary incidents. Soon, the Warrens are sure it's a hoax, but just as they proceed to leave, Lorraine ties in this haunting with the experience she had at Amityville and at her own home.

Just like "The Conjuring," this film is not only good spooky fun, but a well-crafted film. The story line is well written, along with excellent dialogue scenes (which is rare for a horror film). For fans of the first film, the film tells more about the Warrens, and I don't know if other fans feel like this, but I cannot get enough.

Probably the most fascinating thing about the film is the comparison of scenes from the film compared to photographs taken from the actual haunting. The attention to detail is mesmerizing.

This kind of film is not for everyone. But if you a fan of the films that feature stories of the supernatural, "The Conjuring 2," should be on your list. Now, for the next film, I plead to New Line Cinema to produce a biopic of the Warren's life - there is a built in audience that want to learn more about this special couple.

"The Conjuring 2," is rated R for terror and horror violence and has a run-time of two hours and 14 minutes.