With twenty years in the paranormal investigation business, Ed and Lorraine Warren have decided to retire from their profession to focus on building their quiet family life. A tragedy stemming from one of their first assignments forced them to take one last case, which is more personal than they realize.
“The Conjuring: Last Rites” isn’t the grand finale that everyone is positioning it to be. The stakes are high, with the Warrens respectively dealing with their health issues, but this is once again another case of the day set in one domestic space. The refreshing aspect of “The Conjuring” franchise is that, regardless of how big it has become, they remain committed to being confined in small spaces and never letting the horrors outside, unlike prequel titles like “The Nun”.
The limitations of space can open opportunities for something intimate beyond horror. There’s a sincere scene shortly after the Warrens accepted the case, where Ed cooked breakfast pancakes for the children of the affected family they’re investigating. When asked about why he even bothered to do something outside his job, Ed responded that by doing this, he creates a glimpse of normalcy for these kids.
“Last Rites” sandwiched this scene in between separate jump scares. The worrying thing about this film is that it is unapologetically formatted to satisfy a long list of jump scares. Peppering it here and there is fine, but sometimes, the human mind can only be surprised for a certain number, and then it becomes tiring to watch. There’s no denying that these movies are catered to audiences that pay to elicit a communal shock reaction, but maybe I’m just looking for actual stakes and earnestness in these “surprise moments”.
As a closing salvo to its franchise, “The Conjuring: Last Rites” won me when it dealt with matters outside its horror story. I find Ed and Lorraine’s existential dread far scarier than the horrific case that killed a few people. In the end, the final scene with Ed and Lorraine envisioning their retirement after work won me over, and they actually waited until the very last moment to give me something that I wanted.
“The Conjuring: Last Rites” is now showing in cinemas.
Featured images from Warner Bros. Pictures.
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