THE NUN (2018) - Movie Review

Director: Corin Hardy
Starring: Demian Bichir, Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet, Ingrid Bisu, Charlotte Hope, Bonnie Aarons
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Writer: Gary Dauberman, James Wan
Runtime: 96 min
Rated: R for terror, violence, and disturbing/bloody images
Buy This Movie: Blu-ray (Amazon), DVD (Amazon), 4K Ultra HD (Amazon), Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV

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Synopsis:

When a young nun at a cloistered abbey in Romania takes her own life, a priest with a haunted past and a novitiate on the threshold of her final vows are sent by the Vatican to investigate. Together, they uncover the order's unholy secret. Risking not only their lives but their faith and their very souls, they confront a malevolent force in the form of a demonic nun.

Review:

Another one of many "The Conjuring" spinoffs, "The Nun" focuses on the origin story of the titular demonic entity Valak, which was first featured as the supernatural villain in the 2016 sequel "The Conjuring 2". Its gimmick is that it appears as a nun because it gets a kick out of twisting religious iconography and acting blasphemous. It can also take on any other appearance it deems scary enough, because it's convenient for the movie to have more diverse scares.

The casting is economical, with only three central characters portrayed by Demian Bichir, Taissa Farmiga (Vera Farmiga's sister) and Jonas Bloquet, and very few supporting players. Most of the movie is set within the confines of the fictional Saint Cartha monastery, which looks appropriately creepy and echoes the old Dracula movies. The film was shot in Romania at Corvin Castle in Hunedoara and also at Mogosoaia Palace, near Bucharest, and the locations at least help the movie look less fake than the usual Hollywood fare.

There isn't much of a story to speak of, and the characters are flat and uninteresting. But when you're watching a Conjuring universe movie you should already know what you're getting into. It's the same formula in all of these flicks. It very quickly sets up the plot, people are startled by sudden noises and go investigate, they get chased around a bit as jump scares routinely pop up, a big boss battle ensues, roll credits! It's all well shot and the sound design is fantastic, but it's definitely not the best the genre has ever witnessed. However, for a quick horror fix, I suppose it should get the job done.

"The Nun" is neither the best or the absolute worst horror film ever made. It's a generic scare-a-thon that will make you chuckle when it indulges in dumb B-movie tropes, but I'd say that's also part of the fun with these movies. Maybe they do take themselves a bit too seriously, and they certainly lack the elevated artistry of classics like "The Exorcist" or "Nosferatu", but once you become aware that "The Conjuring" franchise is the junk food of horror, you should be able to just sit back and enjoy the relatively short 90-minute haunted house ride.

SCORE: 6/10