The Conjuring 2 (2016)

THE CONJURING 2 is a follow up to the surprise haunted house hit and another outing for psychic investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, as played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga. Sadly, I'm no fan of these films, finding the direction overblown and the reliance on cliches and pedestrian plotting to be completely off-putting. This unconvincing sequel transports the action to England, where the investigators are shoehorned into the famous Enfield Poltergeist case. They end up bringing their old baggage with them, so this is more about evil nuns and stupid spirits than any attempts at realism. The over-the-top fantasy hauntings involving Farmiga's character never gel with the icy chills of the poltergeist case, and it's one of those Hollywood films that manages to make all of the British accents ring hollow and false. By the end, it's devolved into yet another chased-around-by-CGI climax, just like in the INSIDIOUS trilogy, and my interest had long since waned.

I liked it more than the Conjuring, but I think I'll see the first again because I have a feeling I didn't like it for deja vu of seeing this done too many times. While some of the sequel was predictable, the pacing and some plot twists weren't.

Watch this alone in the dark - if you dare. Grabs you and the beginning and keeps your adrenaline going the entire movie - almost too intense.

We continue on with the paranormal adventures of Ed (Patrick Wilson ) and Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) Warren of Amityville fame. They are asked to go to Enfield and investigate a haunting or poltergeist case centering around Janet Hodgson (Madison Wolfe) and the spirit of Bill.The film is filled with jump scares, whispers, screams, etc. enough to make it enjoyable.Much of the film follows reported incidents (a bit exaggerated) and the criticism and skepticism of the time (and today). Claims that Janet did the pranks and practiced ventriloquism as well as being caught red handed faking incidents are included in the feature.The film makers took liberties with reports such as the police report that a chair wobbled from side to side, became a chair moving across the room. The role of Ed and Lorraine was minor and I would suggest the reason why they never wrote about it was that until the last half hour of the film, they deemed it a hoax and that last part was Hollywood writers earning their dime. As an entertaining Poltergeist film, it is all that. As to being factual, there have been other films and features on Enfield that are far less horrific and supernatural.Go watch the film for a good scare for the kids, not a docudrama.Guide: No swearing, sex, or nudity.