Tag: James Wan

REVIEW: The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)

Patrick Wilson as Ed Warren in Michael Chaves’ THE CONJURING: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT — Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures.

Directed by Michael Chaves (The Curse of La Llorona) — Screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick.

Cinematic universes and film series with numerous spin-offs — in the vein of the Marvel Cinematic Universe — are all the rage these days. The primary example of this in the horror genre is the Conjuring film-universe, which, at this point in time, consists of eight films. This horror film cinematic universe was essentially launched by James Wan, who is probably one of the most influential horror filmmakers of the last ten years, and his films in the series — The Conjuring I and II — are, frankly, the best and most memorable films in the entire film series. For that reason, I was very nervous when I heard that he would step away from the franchise and let Michael Chaves, who directed The Curse of La Llorona (which I really did not like), continue, or potentially finish, the titular series of films in the Conjuring film-universe. After having now seen the third main-line Conjuring-film, I can say that even though it is nowhere near as good as Wan’s films, Chaves’ second film in this film universe is admittedly significantly better than his previous film.

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A Good Day to Be a Danish Actor: Mads Mikkelsen & Pilou Asbæk Join Major Franchises

Mads Mikkelsen has landed his next big role in a major Hollywood franchise!

April 15th, 2021 was a good day to be a Danish actor. At least, it sure seemed that way. On this day, Deadline Hollywood revealed two ‘exclusive’ casting news articles. Now, why is that significant? It’s simple really. Two very popular Danish actors are joining two major Hollywood franchises in highly anticipated sequels, and, again, for some unknown (but somewhat amusing) reason these unrelated casting news articles were released on the very same day.

Continue reading “A Good Day to Be a Danish Actor: Mads Mikkelsen & Pilou Asbæk Join Major Franchises” →

REVIEW: Annabelle Comes Home (2019)

Theatrical Release Poster – Warner Bros. Pictures

The following is a review of Annabelle Comes Home — Directed by Gary Dauberman.

The lesson Hollywood first learned from the Marvel Cinematic Universe was to rush into these grand connected universes of films. The DC Cinematic Universe almost crashed and burned. The Godzilla-King Kong connected universe of films is currently struggling. Meanwhile, the Universal Monsters so-called ‘Dark Universe’ never really got off the ground. Surprisingly, the attempt to copy the highly successful Marvel Cinematic Universe that has worked the best has been the Ed and Lorraine Warren-inspired Conjuring Cinematic Universe. Continue reading “REVIEW: Annabelle Comes Home (2019)” →

REVIEW: Aquaman (2018)

Theatrical Release Poster – Warner Bros. Pictures

The following is a review of Aquaman — Directed by James Wan

If you are reading this as a die-hard Aquaman-fan, I’m sorry but I have to start off my review like this: I’ve never thought that highly of the character. I didn’t make dumb water-jokes about him, but, for the longest time, the first things I thought about when I heard someone mention ‘Aquaman’ was, first, Alan Ritchson in CW’s Smallville and, then, the fake James Cameron film from HBO’s Entourage. Continue reading “REVIEW: Aquaman (2018)” →

REVIEW: The Nun (2018)

Theatrical Release Poster – Warner Bros. Pictures

The following is a review of The Nun — Directed by Corin Hardy.

A funny thing happened when I sat down in a local movie theater room to watch The Nun — the newest The Conjuring spin-off film (this one having been inspired by a demon from James Wan’s The Conjuring 2). It was a packed theater full of people of all ages, shapes, and sizes, and right behind me, three young men sat and talked with one another. When the film opened with a scene from The Conjuring 2, I could hear one of them say: “wait, is this a Conjuring-movie?” Then another one said with his mouth full of popcorn: “oh, I haven’t seen the second one yet.” Continue reading “REVIEW: The Nun (2018)” →

REVIEW: Insidious: The Last Key (2018)

Theatrical Release Poster – Universal Pictures

The following is a review of Insidious: The Last Key — Directed by Adam Robitel.

Insidious: The Last Key is the fourth film in the Insidious-franchise. This one is a prequel film that is centered around Lin Shaye’s character, Elise, and how she grew up. In The Last Key, a demon brings Elise back to her childhood home to face up to her past. Meanwhile, she attempts to fix her relationship with her brother, who doesn’t want to see her.
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REVIEW: Annabelle: Creation (2017)

Theatrical Release Poster – New Line Cinema

The following is a review of Annabelle: Creation – Directed by David F. Sandberg.

Annabelle: Creation is a prequel to 2014’s Annabelle, which takes place twelve years prior to the first film. The film follows Sister Charlotte (played by Stephanie Sigman) and a group of orphans who move into the house of a former dollmaker, Samuel Mullins (played by Anthony LaPaglia).

The Mullins family lost their daughter to an accident twelve years earlier, but they are now ready to open their house to kids that will, at the very least, liven up the place. But not all dolls are created equal, and the Mullins family has one very special doll hidden in their daughter’s old room. That doll ‘is’ Annabelle, and she is ready to play on the young orphans’ fears. Continue reading “REVIEW: Annabelle: Creation (2017)” →

Top Ten ‘Horror/Thriller’ Films of the 21st Century – So Far (2016)

ijr-list-horror-21st

Since we just celebrated Halloween, I thought I should do a list of horror films. I thought it’d be a good idea to name my top ten favorite horror films from the 21st century (so far). Now, I ended up using a somewhat loose interpretation of horror. You will also find both horror comedies and select thrillers on this list. So, without further ado, let’s take a look at some of my favorite ‘new’ horror films and the like. Continue reading “Top Ten ‘Horror/Thriller’ Films of the 21st Century – So Far (2016)” →