The Nun II (2023)

Despite having such a strong central character on its poster with a great back story, 'The Nun 2' spends more time on the pauses and long dialogue scenes than on the scares. 'Nun the less', watch it if you are invested in the 'Conjuring' universe.

Five years on from her first outing, Taissa Farmiga dons her holy robes to return as the nun who is a dab hand at facing down satanic apparitions. It's France in the 1950s and a priest is seized in his own church and brutally killed. Not by a person though - and that's where "Sister Irene" comes in. Fairly quickly her investigations take her to a girl's school where a previous tragedy has left a room completely sealed off and that's where she senses the source of this evil may be lurking. Can she figure out who this demon is and thwart it's ambitions - ambitions that really centre on the absorption of her own, true, spirit? Well, what do you think? We have a bit of eye candy from Jonas Bloquet's handyman "Maurice" but that's countered by far too many children - so often the death knell in horror films with their screeching, squealing and toxic effect on the jeopardy of any story - if only they would actually just do as they were told! To be fair, though, they are not the only thing that drags this down. It's all so very verbal, procedural and predictable. Even the visual effects are a direct descendent of the first film with a denouement that cannot be a shock to anyone. I know it's hard to reinvent the wheel in this genre, but films like this really offer very little by way of creative innovation, acting/writing skills or even providing the merest hint of scariness. Adequate for Halloween television, but no more I'd say.

I guess a plus on this sequel is it is better than the first one. Not that says much as I didn't really care for it, as it was a sludge to sit through, especially the finale. Here, honestly I couldn't really understand what the heck was going on but I suppose some of the direction was interesting and it didn't feel like it dragged on. That said, it is empty on any emotional elements.

The only reason I even like "The Conjuring Universe" is because of Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, even the mediocre "The Devil Made Me Do It" was watchable because of them, all of these other entries have been mostly duds. **2.5/5**

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THE NUN II surpasses its predecessor with commendable acting, improved practical effects, and impressive imagery, making it a surprisingly decent horror blockbuster. Michael Chaves effectively utilizes his budget, showcasing well-directed, suspenseful sequences.

However, it stumbles in the second act with a loss of momentum and still overuses generic jumpscares that often fall flat. The unnecessary complexity introduced in the story, including weird flashbacks and character intricacies, leads to a somewhat messy third act narratively.

Despite these issues, this sequel represents a positive step forward for the franchise, although I doubt it will ever go back to the peak of the first two The Conjuring films."

Rating: B-

<em>'The Nun II'</em> concludes this franchise, at least for the time being, in typical fashion - that being rather dull. I haven't got much new to add, anything I could say I've said much before for most of the other entries; most notably for the original 2018 film.

I mainly dislike The Nun character, both in terms of how it looks visually and how it is portrayed audibly - just such a disappointment, <em>'The Curse of La Llorona'</em> did it greater... not that many would agree with me, admittedly. The human side of all this isn't much better either.

The only positive I have is that some of the attacks on the kids here are fairly brutal, though sadly they are few and far between so don't elevate the film all that much. All in all, this is a forgettable flick at best.