The Conjuring 2 – Plot, Cast, & Everything You Should Know About The Movie

The Conjuring 2, the sequel to 2013’s horror smash, is a supernatural horror film that follows Ed and Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators who return to London to investigate the Hodgson family case. When one of the Hodgson daughters appears to be possessed after playing with an Ouija board, weird happenings spread throughout the house. 

A Sneak Peek of The Conjuring 2 Movie Plot

What frightens you? It’s simple to see why James Wan is scared. The director’s sense of cinematic fear was influenced by horror films from the 1970s and 1980s, frequently evoking hits from the era such as “The Omen” and “Poltergeist.” In many ways, “The Conjuring 2” is the “ultimate James Wan film,” allowing the filmmaker to experiment with era-specific approaches in recounting one of its most famous paranormal activities: the renowned Enfield poltergeist. Being able to connect the “true story” of another horror classic from his childhood to this one (“The Amityville Horror“) only sweetens the deal. Wan is like a kid in a haunted candy store in “The Conjuring 2,” and his talent (and those of his team) make this type of trip pleasurable, even if it lacks the visceral, confident impact of the original. 

The Cast of The Conjuring 2

“The Conjuring 2” begins with legendary ghostbusters Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) investigating the aftermath of the killings dubbed “The Amityville Horror.” Lorraine has a unique ability to speak with otherworldly beings and has been asked to affirm that what happened at Amityville was demonic rather than the actions of a homicidal father. Lorraine has an out-of-body experience while sitting around a table in the DeFeo dining room, allowing her to see the shotgun murders that occurred in the house, as well as a “Demon Nun” (Bonnie Aarons), which is literally how the recurring vision is listed in the credits, who will haunt Lorraine throughout the film and warn Ed that his days are numbered.

Following the Amityville prologue, the action shifts to Enfield, England (we know we’re in England because Wan, never a subtle director, uses “London Calling” on the soundtrack, an obvious choice that is more amusing than annoying). We meet the Hodgson family, which is led by single mother Peggy (Frances O’Connor) and includes four children. One of the girls is Janet (Madison Wolfe), and she begins to have far more serious troubles at home than when her teacher found her smoking.

The Main Storyline of The Conjuring 2

It starts with sleepwalking, then develops to sounds in the middle of the night, and finally finishes with possession. A man named Bill Wilkins (Bob Adrian) appears to have the capacity to take over the unfortunate girl’s body, including speaking through her, resulting in some iconic recordings in which a little girl sounds suspiciously like an old man. And that’s nowhere near as terrifying as the upside-down crosses or images of the “Crooked Man.” The local authorities contact the Warrens, who travel to England to establish whether the Hodgsons are faking the haunting or preventing them from becoming the next Amityville.

Children in danger, a beleaguered mother, and an old home. Sounds familiar? It should. Wan and his screenwriters purposely hit many of the same beats as the previous picture, resulting in a setup that frequently feels too identical and disappoints by contrast since O’Connor’s character lacks the depth of Lili Taylor’s in the original. Taylor’s underappreciated performance in that film served to anchor the scare tactics in something real. 

The people in “The Conjuring 2” are secondary, presented with minor definitions (mom is concerned about money, one of the boys’ stutters, etc.), and then put under enough pressure that the Warrens must rescue the day. Despite Wolfe’s excellent work in capturing the dread of a girl who has no understanding of what’s going on (as well as being legitimately terrifying when necessary), the characters in “The Conjuring 2” do not resonate, thus we don’t care what happens to them.

However, The Cast And Storyline Of Conjuring 2 Don’t Live Up To The Expectations

“The Conjuring 2” fails to measure up to the films that inspired it (or the original), not because of the cinematic laziness that we so frequently witness in horror (particularly sequels), but simply because Wan and colleagues are having too much fun to streamline their production. The film is incredibly long, and at least 15 minutes might have been cut to make it a tighter, scarier trip. At times, the constant haunting becomes numbing, reducing the potential to scare.

The dedication of Wan and his team—particularly Farmiga and Wilson, who entirely devote themselves to their sometimes-goofy roles—makes the ride worthwhile, but “The Conjuring 2” sometimes be too familiar to get under our skin. It is an extraordinarily strong piece of filmmaking on a technical level, which will be plenty for many Wan fans (and those of us who are tired of Hollywood horror films that sometimes have no filmmaking prowess at all), but ghost stories don’t have the same impact the second time you hear them. Even the scariest ones.