Movie Review: “Annabelle Comes Home” is a mildly entertaining entry in “The Conjuring” universe

Movie Review: “Annabelle Comes Home” (R)

Is the third time the charm for this “The Conjuring” spinoff? Not exactly. But still, there’s an innocence and a pleasant enough spook-alley vibe that go a long way to make this movie worthy of your time, particularly if you’re a fan of “The Conjuring” shared universe. At the very least, this chapter is stronger than the first “Annabelle” picture, and it’s also a more effective watch than last year’s “The Conjuring” offshoot, “The Nun.”

Friends Mary (Madison Iseman) and Daniela (Katie Sarife) get more than they bargained after agreeing to watch over young Judy Warren (Mckenna Grace), the daughter of paranormal experts Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) and Ed (Patrick Wilson), while mom and dad are away for work. After ignoring the signs that lead to the Warrens’ basement, a grieving Daniela opts to enter anyway, and upon investigating the numerous antiques Lorraine and Ed have acquired on their many paranormal adventures, she comes across Annabelle. And even though the creepy, possessed doll has clearly be encased for a reason, it isn’t long before Daniela let’s her out! Rules were made to be broken, weren’t they?

As directed by Gary Dauberman, “Annabelle Comes Home” takes a while to get going. But once it hits its stride, it’s a moderately entertaining ride, particularly, in the final 30 minutes when the picture transforms into an extended funhouse attraction. There’s plenty of stuff we’ve seen before but there are some gags, including one dealing with coins, that do pay off in creepy fashion.

That said, there’s something a bit off in terms of the editing and the geography of the action, especially when stacked up against “Annabelle: Creation.” The final act finds characters being split up; Daniela is trapped in the basement while Mary and Judy deal with their own set of problems upstairs. Meanwhile, a boyish supporting character named Bob (Michael Cimino, not to be confused with the iconic director of the same name) is pursued by a monstrous presence outside the house. The way Dauberman cuts between the action feels a little lacking in rhythm, but thankfully, the creepy tone does reign supreme.

Oddly enough, perhaps what works best in this film is the likability factor. Again, there’s an innocence here that’s most welcome and unexpected. Unlike a lot of contemporary horror films, “Annabelle Comes Home” doesn’t rely upon relentless gore and shock tactics to prove its worth. In fact, I’ve seen PG-13 rated horror movies that were more extreme.

Furthermore, there’s a tenderness here that we don’t see a lot of in movies of this nature. Case in point, a cute little crush between Mary and Bob that doesn’t end in the prerequisite booty call you might be expecting. It’s refreshing to see puppy love displayed in such a tender and sweet-natured way.

Adding to the aforementioned likability factor are the performances. Farmiga and Wilson only have glorified cameos here but they bring their typical sense of warmth to the table in a very short amount of screen time. Grace brings sensitivity to the role of Judy. This young girl is not only dealing with a potential gift (or curse, depending on your perception) handed down from her mother but she also has the added pressure of being that classmate with the weird parents. Iseman is charming, and her natural screen presence goes a long way to keep Mary from being a one-note babysitter. Of the cast, it might be Sarife who leaves the biggest impression. As a teen dealing with loss, an emotional Daniela desperately wants to believe there’s something out there, and through her intense ordeal with Mary and Judy, she may just get an answer.

The first “Annabelle” left me cold. It wasn’t particularly scary, and there wasn’t anything particularly memorable about the characters. The second and strongest of the “Annabelle” films by contrast hearkened back to the actual creation of the doll, and under the dynamic direction of “Lights Out” helmer David Sandberg, that movie managed to deliver the scares. While “Annabelle Comes Home” isn’t as straight-up spooky as the last picture, it does offer up appealing characters and a creepy funhouse vibe that should make fans of “The Conjuring” universe happy.

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