The Conjuring series has been a gripping horror series with thr first Conjuring (2013) directed by James Wan, the more ghosts, but slightly less scary, Conjuring 2 (2016), this third film, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, starts off intense! The series features paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine Warren, caught up in powerful terrors threatening seemingly normal families. There has been spin-offs with the latest one was Annabelle Comes Home (2019) which had a cameo with the Warrens. The director, Michael Chaves, previously directed the light horror of The Curse of La Llorona (2019). The screenplay is by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick who co-wrote the screenplay for Conjuring 2 and co-wrote the this story with James Wan. The film’s release was delayed until released in theaters and on HBO Max on June 4th.
The movie begins with the eerie music of Joseph Bishara who composed the music of all of the The Conjuring films. We see a three story house with some lights on in the night. A broken chandelier as words are said, a prayer, for an exorcism by Ed Warren (Patrick Wilson). The actor was also in Annabelle Comes Home. We are introduced to the introduction type that it is July 18, 1981. The first movie took place in 1971, Conjuring 2 was in 1977, and now we find the Warrens four years later, a journey through their many cases. They are witnessing the exorcism of David Glatzel (Julian Hillard). He is eight years old, glasses, just a boy. Glatzel starred as Billy Maximoff in WandaVision. David is being held by his mother, Judy Glatzel (Charlene Amoia). On the other side of the couch is his older sister, Debbie (Sarah Catherine Hook) and her boyfriend, Arne Johnson (Ruari O’Connor). Hook was in an episode of the Monsterland horror show. O’Connor was in The Spanish Princess mini-series. Arne becomes our focus, IRL they were fiancees. The movie hangs on their appeal as a simple couple, not stock characters. Ed calls for a break.
Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) is next by his side. Varmiga is in the upcoming Hawkeye series as Eleanor Bishop. Next to them is David’s father, Carl Glatzel (Paul Wilson). Lorraine checks on Ed who says this case is unusual for them. Arne takes David to sleep. Carl is worried about his son, but Ed tries to reassure him that Father Gordon will be there soon. A quiet moment, Arne tries to say David is being brave, and promises to protect him. David brings up when Arne will ask his sister to marry. Arne nervously laughs and then looks out the window to see the taxi cab pull up with Father Gordon (Steve Coulter). This is a part Coulter begun in Conjuring 2. The priest walks up to the dark house. David hears the knocking at the door and heads to the bathroom. He hears the rattling of a doorknob and hides behind the shower curtains. David looks up and sees the black shower rings are actually fingers. The shower turns on and sprays David with blood! Carl breaks into the room with the others. David appears from a corner and then stabs his father in the leg with a knife!
David is enraged, Ed tries to carry him down the stairs, and David’s fingernails claw the walls! Ed’s assistant, Drew (Shannon Kook) tries to catch everything on camera, the others try to restrain the possessed David on a table while Father Gordon performs the exorcism! Kook has also starred in the past Conjuring films. Lorraine sees clairvoyant visions as she assists. The table starts to shudder as Father Gordon sprays David with holy water. The sweating, pus-filled David lets out a scream, then dishes start flying out of cabinet and one smashes into Father Gordon. Ed checks on Father Gordon. He picks up Gordon’s bible and we hear bones snapping as David’s body twists around under the grip of Debbie, Arne, and Lorraine. Arne pleads for the spirit to leave David alone against the warnings of Ed. David knocks back Arne and Ed, leaps on Ed, and threatens to stop his heart! Arne takes up David and screams to leave David and take him! The weakened Ed sees the spirit pass to Arne. Lorraine checks on him, but Ed collapses. The titles explain that David Glatzel’s exorcism to Arne Johnson’s torment and national headlines. I’m not familiar with the news story, but take the film as a dramatization of events.
At the hospital, a doctor reports that they are going to put a stent in David’s artery after the heart attack, Father Gordon is concerned, as is Debbie and Lorraine. Arne is asleep hearing echoes of the fateful night, light shines on him, and then he notices Debbie. They kiss and then hear the dogs barking outside. Arne pulls her back to say that now David is safe that they should leave Brookfield. They are such a nice couple and I like that Arne is more concerned about David than all other things. Debbie heads over to her job at the first story of the Boarding Kennels. Her boss, Bruno (Ronnie Gene Blevins) just likes to rock out to his stereo which he needs Arne to fix. Debbie tells him about how to care for the dogs. Later, Debbie tells her mother, Judy, about Arne’s plans as he plays football with David. She tells him to get the meat in the refrigerator and a box of cereal spills over. Arne inspects the box, a rat bursts out, and he follows it into a darkened hole in the wall! So it begins. At night at the Brookfield General Hospital, Lorraine tells Father Gordon about how she and Ed met, 30 years at a movie theater. It is a really sweet moment that brings this couple together and gives a little more insight to them.
A window reveals Arne working on a tree with a chainsaw, he tries to start it, but the chainsaw sputters. Arne turns to see a person in a dark suit in the window, but then he is gone. The chainsaw suddenly starts buzzing causing Arne to drop it in from his startled co-workers. Arne drives his truck over to the dog kennel. Bruno is happy Arne is there to fix his stereo and drink a beer. He takes Arne in as Debbie noticing the dogs barking. At Brookfield General, Ed revives and his daughter Judy (Sterling Jerins) is excited. Jarins also stars in The Conjuring movies. Ed tries to warn Lorraine that the spirit has possessed Arne. Bruno is happy that Arne fixed his stereo so he can crank up Blondie’s “Call Me.” Bruno takes Debbie into a dance, Arne blinks, she is laughing. Lorraine contacts the police. Arne washes his face in the sink. He hears Debbie screaming, it looks like demonic Bruno has her, the dogs in the cages disorient Arne. Flashes of red in the window, the song cuts off, screams. Then, we get Arne walking down the road confronted by a police officer. The violence is implied, there hasn’t been murder in Brookfield for some time, and the Warrens are looking to Arne’s defense and the evil continues even during his prison time. It will take the Warrens’ investigation and help with a character played by John Noble who also had a dark secret! Lorraine has to take the lead since Ed is recovering and she has to crawl through a basement to find rats and a totem! The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is a small town horror, one of the most challenging cases for the Warrens putting them in danger!, and one of the best Conjuring stories where we might find a little love in a world surrounded by darkness!
Four Totems out of Five!
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