The Conjuring: Last Rites Review

The Conjuring series has returned for a supposedly final film. The Warrens’ final case serves as the inspiration for The Conjuring: Last Rites.

In 1986, a family in West Pittston, Pennsylvania, the Smurls, was haunted after obtaining a mysterious mirror. Their only hope seems to be the Warrens, but they have been semi-retired due to Ed’s (Patrick Wilson) heart condition. However, the Smurls’ case might have a more personal connection to the Warrens than they realise.

The Conjuring franchise has been one of the most successful extended universes. It has spanned 10 movies with three series. Collectively, they had grossed over $2.4 billion, and The Conjuring: Last Rites had the biggest worldwide opening weekend for a horror film. It has recently been announced that a Conjuring TV show is being developed for HBO Max.

Last Rites did feel like it was made with a sense of finality. The Warrens were coming back for one last case. It followed up on The Devil Made Me Do It with Ed’s heart issues, which knocked the Warrens out of action. There were plot developments that felt like they were taken from No Time to Die and Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning. There were a lot of references to previous films, like a presentation about Annabelle and a tour of the Warrens’ vault. I watched the Conjuring films in preparation for The Last Rites, but I should have watched the Annabelle movies as well.

The Devil Made Me Do It tried to change the Conjuring formula, but it wasn’t as well-received as the previous films. The Last Rites followed the setup and formula of the first two films. The Smurls were like the Perrons and Hodgsons, families who were trapped in a haunted house and couldn’t leave because of financial constraints. The Smurls mirrored the Hodgons, as they also lived in a cramped house and used the media to try to get help.

Also like The Conjuring 2, The Last Rites was a long, overstuffed film. Both films had dual plots. In The Last Rites’ case, there was a traditional Conjuring story and a story about a mother trying to protect her daughter from supernatural forces. There was an attempt by the filmmakers to link the stories since the Warrens encountered the mirror in 1964. It was implied that the mirror caused Judy Warren’s (Mia Tomlinson) psychic powers and haunted her since she was a young child. Sadly, the two stories were largely disjointed. It took a long time for the Warrens and Smurls to meet, to the point where I was thinking, ‘Get on with it.’ It was two stories jammed together.

The Smurls’ story felt a bit like Oculus, since the 2014 film was also about a haunted mirror that traumatised a family and played mind games with its victims. Oculus was a great horror movie, so it’s not a bad one to reference. A scene where a character ended up vomiting blood was particularly effective.

Judy’s story wasn’t as strong as the Smurls’ experience, but it still had some strengths. Tomlinson was in her first Hollywood film, and she was excellent in the role of Judy. She was a young woman who wanted her dad to like her boyfriend, Tony (Ben Hardy), but suffered from visions. There was a solid core since Judy’s parents and boyfriend wanted to protect and save their loved one. At the same time, Judy felt like she was being held back by her mother. Judy’s side of the film revolved around her visions, which meant the film became dependent on CGI effects. CGI can be hit or miss in horror movies.

Even though The Last Rites was set in the United States, it was actually filmed in the UK. I only noticed this when looking at the cast list, which had numerous British actors. The only Americans in the cast were the returning characters. The production designers, location scouts, and CGI artists did an excellent job masking the British filming locations.

The Last Rites did have some emerging talent. Hopefully, the film can act as a springboard for Tomlinson, whilst onscreen partner Hardy was recognisable from his roles in EastEnders, X-Men: Apocalypse, and Bohemian Rhapsody. The elder Smurl daughters were played by actresses with growing reputations. There was Kíla Lord Cassidy, who has already gained recognition for her role in The Wonder. She was the main character from the Smurl family and did well as someone suffering from the curse. Beau Gadsdon (The Railway Children Return) played the older sister, and she was good at being the antagonist older sister early in the film.

The Last Rites was a perfectly solid studio horror film. It didn’t match the heights of the first Conjuring film, but it does honour the previous film.