If you don’t know anything about Annabelle by now then I can only assume you have no interest in the horror genre at all. And if you have no interest in the horror genre at all then you won’t care about seeing Annabelle: Creation, a prequel to Annabelle (funnily enough) that actually turns out to be a better film than the first. In fact, one post-credits annoyance aside, in which viewers are reminded of the cinematic universe this is part of, it’s in contention to be one of the best films from that particular selection, helped in a small way by not having the Warrens popping up as righteous heroes.
Things begin with a pair of parents (Anthony LaPaglia and Miranda Otto) experiencing a tragic loss. Some time later, the couple open up their home to a nun and a number of orphan girls. There’s one room marked as off limits, of course, which means it isn’t too long until at least one young girl is drawn to that room. And that creepy-looking doll keeps popping up to scare everyone.
Written by Gary Dauberman, who also wrote the first movie, this is an enjoyable mix of chills and sudden frights, enhanced by a cast all doing good work under the watchful eye of director David F. Sandberg. Sandberg and Dauberman know what audiences will expect, but they are able to make the most of every set-piece, using darkness and the unknown to deliver more than just cheap jump scares. There’s impressively unsettling imagery here that feels far removed from what you would expect in such a glossy and mainstream work.
As for the cast, Talitha Bateman and Lulu Wilson play the two main girls who end up in peril, and both do very good work in their roles (the former also having to portray herself as crippled, and therefore more vulnerable to any attacks from evil forces). Stephanie Sigman does well as the nun in charge of the children, although she has to spend a lot of the runtime conveniently avoiding seeing anything untoward (aka “doing a Scully”) until the finale, and both LaPaglia and Otto are good choices for their roles, lending their talents to characters who could have easily been nothing more than a mass of clichés and overcooked melodrama.
As much as people want to dismiss these movies, and there will always be some horror fans who turn their nose up at anything given a major cinema release, it’s good to see one that works even better than expected. There are so many different ways this could have gone, most of them not very good (e.g. almost every other film in this cinematic horror universe), but Sandberg, Dauberman, and co. (and I just also want to mention Benjamin Wallfisch here for his great score) have all pulled together to make something as seriously creepy and unsettling as it is entertaining and marketable.
Although it does tie in to the first movie, this could easily be viewed as a standalone piece, as long as you are aware of the infamy of the doll, and I recommend it as a solid option for those seeking a good scary movie.
8/10
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