Title – The Nun II (2023) 

Director – Michael Chaves (The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It) 

Cast – Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet, Storm Reid, Anna Popplewell

Plot – Sister Irene (Farmiga) is once more tasked by the church she serves to rid the world of an evil presence she long thought had been banished when a series of grisly murders in the late 1950’s make it apparent urgent action is required.  

“Something doesn’t feel right” 

Review by Eddie on 15/09/2023

Somewhere on the internet someone claimed that the Conjuring universe has become something of a Marvel/Avengers of the horror world and it’s hard to disagree with that statement with its dwindling returns also similar to the phase of the Marvel world right now where once bright beacons of the genre have petered out to generic and forgettable offerings that have little of the goodness that once flowed through their cinematic veins. 

Starting out in great fashion with James Wan’s original Conjuring in 2013 and remaining steady with its sequel in 2016, there are now a total of 9 feature films in the extended Conjuring cinematic space with a further two already announced, meaning that a dilution of quality has been an ongoing problem for the name brand that once more here ventures back into the space of the worlds most nefarious nun with Michael Chaves direct sequel to 2018’s The Nun. 

Thankfully a slight step-up from the terribleness that was Corin Hardy’s original solo nun outing, The Nun 2 is saved only by a few neat sequences and a fairly entertaining schlock-filled finale that gives Black Philip a chance to shine as Chaves and his leading lady Taissa Farmiga struggling to actually make The Nun 2 a scary offering that far too often delves purely into the jump scare world of horror film-making that forgoes any real sense of purpose, any real logical plot movements or characters we care about as it goes for the lowest hanging fruit it can pick in giving audiences a scare-inducing ride. 

Bonnie Aarons the “demon nun” still remains a scary creation in her own right and the films 1950’s European set locales certainly feel the part of a horror film but Chaves is unable to conjure up anything much of note here as Farmiga’s Irene joins Storm Reid’s pointless to the stories fellow nun Debra as the two are tasked by the church to track down the person/entity responsible for a string of gruesome murders across the region that suggests a far more interesting story than the one we actually get that just so happens to include Anna Popplewell’s (grown up from Narnia) Kate, Katelyn Rose Downey as her daughter Sophie and Jonas Bloquet’s returning Maurice, joining the gang on a predictable and stale set-up that could’ve been a whole lot more memorable handled correctly. 

Much like Marvel films there is now a “Conjuring” formula these core and off-shoot films stick to very closely, working with directors for hire to deliver run of the mill offerings that are low-budget and easy to make a quick buck from but if the brand name continues to follow this route they will quickly run out of fans willing to pay hard earned money to witness proceedings they have already seen and seen delivered in a more memorable fashion, suggesting James Wan’s creation needs to either stop before it reaches the point of no return or do something unexpected to enliven the property once more. 

Final Say – 

A predictable and barely passable new addition to the Conjuring world that can only lay claim to being slightly more enjoyable than its dire original offering, The Nun 2 is another uninspired entry into the franchise that suggests the tank is well and truly empty when it comes to effectiveness and creative spark. 

2 tomato plants out of 5