‘Annabelle’ movie review: You’ve seen it all
with this ugly, frightening doll
It is an article of faith in
moviehouses, if not in the various houses of the Lord, that demons are always
clamoring for your mortal soul. Hollywood has never adequately explained what
exactly these fiends mean to do with it. Presumably, our human essence is
packed with unholy phytochemicals that the demons need to survive, like some supernatural
form of kale.
That tenet lies at the heart
of “Annabelle,” a
spinoff/prequel inspired by last year’s “The Conjuring.” The
villain in the new movie — a creepy doll that played an incidental role in the
plot of that earlier (and far superior) horror film — is a conduit for a spirit
whose state of malevolence, and apparent malnourishment, compels it to try to
scare up a little soul food.
The result is a
disappointingly derivative dish.
Working from a silly script by
Gary Dauberman (writer of the straight-to- video “Blood Monkey”), director John
R. Leonetti borrows a little too liberally from the dog-eared demon-doll
cookbook, serving up a platter of half-baked cliches seen in everything from
“Magic” to “Child’s Play” and
beyond, all spiced up with lazy jump scares of the sort that have been used a
hundred times before.
When it comes to visuals, the
director has a modest flair. Leonetti is the longtime cinematographer for
horror master James Wan, having worked with him on four of the director’s
films, from “Dead Silence” to “Insidious: Chapter 2.” Here, Wan acts as
producer, but his oversight isn’t enough to fix the problems with his
sous-chef.
Set in 1970, the story centers
on John and Mia (Ward Horton and Annabelle Wallis), a married couple who, along
with their new baby, are terrorized by an antique doll, the hideousness of
which is apparent to all but the protagonists. “Where did you find her?”
squeals Mia with delight, after John presents his wife with something that
resembles a ventriloquist’s dummy in drag that’s been left out in the rain for
too long. “Do you know how long I’ve been looking?”
Really? Looking for this freak
show, with a face like a gargoyle? The thing would pull a shank on you from
under its petticoat the minute you turn your back. And you’re going to put it
in the baby’s room?
John and Mia soon start
experiencing run-of-the-mill poltergeist phenomena: phantom popcorn bursting
into flames on the stove, poor television reception, a sewing machine running
in the middle of the night. Not exactly blood-curdling stuff, even though
Leonetti tries to make it so. He’s more successful in insinuating that every
supporting character might be the antichrist, pumping up the creep-out factor
in a book shop owner (Alfre Woodard), a boy next door (Gabriel Bateman) and the
police detective (Eric Ladin) investigating the attacks by Satan worshippers
that open the film.
Ah, yes, Satan worship. At
least that plot point goes somewhere. Which is more than you can say for the
little boy (who seems to be clairvoyant, but aren’t they all?). He gets
introduced but is never explained and soon is forgotten.
But the biggest hole is the
one at the center: What does the devil want with the baby’s soul?
Despite its deficiencies,
“Annabelle” is not without a modicum of verve. It has its unnerving moments,
but they’re outweighed by the sheer stupidity and predictability of the story.
It’s not a movie for connoisseurs of horror, but for more susceptible sorts,
those content with a fast-food approach to fearmongering.
“The devil preys on the weak
and the vulnerable,” Mia says, reading aloud from the occult reference guide
that she consults when Beelzebub himself starts making house calls.
So do movies such as this,
which pander like the dickens.
★
R. At area
theaters. Contains frightening and violent sequences. 95 minutes.
Michael O'Sullivan
Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Michael O’Sullivan has worked since
1993 at The Washington Post, where he covers art, film and other forms of
popular — and unpopular — culture.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/annabelle-movie-review-youve-seen-it-all-with-this-ugly-frightening-doll/2014/10/01/101f2aea-48f1-11e4-b72e-d60a9229cc10_story.html?wpisrc=nl_movies&wpmm=1
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