REVIEW: “The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It” (2021)

June 7, 2021 by Keith Garlington

Two of my very favorite horror movies of the last decade were James Wan’s “The Conjuring” (2013) and “The Conjuring 2” (2016). Based on the supposed real-life case files of paranormal investigators and Vatican certified demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren, the Conjuring films were breaths of fresh air in a genre that had become pretty bland and stale. Both films were big box office successes which Warner Brothers used to launch several spin-off movies. None of them came close to the quality of Wan’s centerpieces, but they made money and ensured franchise fans of future movies.

The third film sees Wan producing and conceiving the story but stepping away from the director’s chair. It also sees the series dropping the number in its title and going with a case-referencing subtitle. Even more, unlike its predecessors, this isn’t a haunted house movie. Instead it’s based on the 1981 trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson which became known as the “Devil Made Me Do It” case (hence the film’s funny sounding yet appropriate title). This one very much plays like a supernatural mystery; one that isn’t confined to a single location. Its differences from the previous two movies are obvious, but that’s part of what makes it such a nice addition to the series.

Though helmed by a new director (Michael Chaves), “The Devil Made Me Do It” does see the return of its most essential ingredients. The reliable Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson reprise their roles as Loraine and Ed, possessing that same stellar chemistry that has made the Warrens the heart of the “Conjuring” films. Their loving, devoted relationship has always played a crucial part to these stories, but never more than in the third film. In fact you could call this a thoughtful love story, albeit one wrapped from top to bottom in eerie supernatural terror.

The film opens with a chilling prologue that would feel right at home in first films. The Warrens have been summoned to Brookfield, Connecticut where they’re documenting the exorcism of 8-year-old David Glatzel (Julian Hilliard). In an obvious but satisfying toast to “The Exorcist”, the priest (Steve Coulter) arrives at the family home, standing in the soft glow of a street lamp with his bag by his side. Inside a malevolent demon fully takes hold of young David and a spiritual battle ensues. During the encounter Ed is attacked by the sinister spirit and suffers a heart attack. Then, unbeknownst by everyone other than the now unconscious Ed, the demon jumps from David to Arne Johnson (Ruairi O’Connor), the amiable boyfriend of David’s older sister Debbie (Sarah Catherine Hook).

By the time Ed wakes up in the hospital it’s too late to stop the demon from resurfacing in Arne. One gruesome murder later and Arne is in court pleading guilty by reason of demonic possession. Loraine and a recovering Ed get back on the case, setting out to prove Arne was possessed by uncovering the evil at the heart of it all. Screenwriter David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick pulls the Warrens out of the confines of a single-setting and sends them on a paranormal whodunnit that sees them tracking down a hermit ex-priest with knowledge of the occult, helping police with a cold case in a nearby town, and revisiting the home where the demon first possessed young David. And of course there is plenty of demonic pushback along the way.

By venturing outside of the haunted house box the third movie loses some of the nail-biting tension that kept fans perpetually on the edges of their seats. The first two films did a masterful job immersing their audiences in the suffocating terror of their settings – confining them within the walls of a creepy house with a devilish entity. There are tastes of that throughout part three, but this one leans more into a sustained level of dread. It’s not always cranked up to 10 nor does it need to be. But there is an ominous cloud that hangs over practically every scene. There are parts of the story that I wish were given more attention (such as the courtroom stuff), but the filmmakers know people aren’t coming to a “Conjuring” movie to see witness testimonies and cross-examinations.

“The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It” finds itself in an tough spot. It makes an effort to actually do something different within the series rather than follow the blueprint of the two earlier movies. It seeks to show that the “Conjuring” films don’t have to be the same thing over and over again. Some people will appreciate that ambition while others wishing for ‘more of the same’ could get lost in comparing it to its predecessors. That would be a shame because this is a solid entry that may lack some of the chills but yet maintains the spirit of the two earlier installments. And it does so by avoiding the copy-and-paste approach where the names have changed but not much else has. “The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It” is now showing in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.

VERDICT – 4 STARS

Movie Poster Spotlight: “Old” (2021)

June 4, 2021 by Keith Garlington

Check out the wickedly cool poster for the upcoming horror-thriller “Old”

Director: M. Night Shyamalan

Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal, Vicky Krieps, Thomasin McKenzie, Rufus Sewell, Ken Leung

Release: July 23, 2021

First Glance: “Lansky”

June 4, 2021 by Keith Garlington

I’m always up for a good old-school gangster flick. “Lansky” from writer-director Eytan Rockaway is a biographical drama about Meyer Lansky, a notorious Jewish mobster and close associate to Italian mob boss Charles “Lucky” Luciano. Vertical Entertainment has released the first trailer and it gives us a good look at Oscar-nominated screen veteran Harvey Keitel in the movie’s titular character.

“Lansky” is told from an interesting perspective. Down-on-his-luck writer David Stone (played by Sam Worthington) is contacted by none other than Meyer Lansky and given the opportunity to tell the gangster’s story. At the same time FBI agents, frustrated by their inability to put the gangster away, begin squeezing Stone to secretly get information from Lansky that they can use to build their case. The trailer has a very classic crime story vibe and there is certainly enough untapped material about Lansky’s fascinating criminal life to make for a good movie. It’ll all come down to Rockaway’s execution.

“Lansky” arrives in theaters and on VOD June 25th. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

REVIEW: “Athlete A” (2020)

June 4, 2021 by Keith Garlington

Last year as my first few batches of awards season screeners started arriving they included several movies that had slipped by me during the year. One was “Athlete A”, a Netflix documentary chronicling the the sex abuse scandal that rocked the United States Gymnastics national team. It turned out to be one of the better documentaries from a year full of really good ones.

“Athlete A” comes from the co-directing duo of Bonni Cohen and John Shenk. They not only detail the timeline of the abuse specifically from the once esteemed Dr. Larry Nassar, but they show the dedicated work of the Indianapolis Star’s investigative team in uncovering this appalling scandal. And in a day when the media is under such intense scrutiny, much of it justified, it’s a testament to the value of true investigative journalism in unearthing corruption and in this case sickening abuse.

The film allows plenty of time for the voices of Nassar’s victims, now adult women, who bravely bring the story’s sobering reality into focus. Nassar was the highly respected team doctor for the national team who shrouded his sexual abuse of young gymnasts under the guise of medical procedures. After allegations were made against him by Maggie Nichols the US Gymnastic officials remained silent attempting to minimize the damage. For 15 full months after the allegation, Nassar was allowed to continue treating and abusing young girls before action was finally taken against him.

Image Courtesy of Netflix

In addition to speaking with the victims and their families, Cohen and Shenk speak to the journalists who investigated and eventually rooted out the story. Not only did they uncover Nassar’s abuse but also the negligence of the USA Gymnastics officials in protecting their girls and taking their abuse claims to the authorities. We also hear from attorneys who prosecuted Nassar’s case and we get to see those powerful courtroom images of the victims bravely coming forward to face their abuser. I remember those clips from news broadcasts and they still pack the same emotional punch today.

“Athlete A” is a pretty standard documentary in terms of style and structure, but it makes up for it where it really counts. Cohen and Shenk get us close to the victims and their pain, follows the determined journalists, and pulls no punches when it comes to the perpetrators. Along the way they take much needed jabs at the ‘win at all costs’ mentality that permeates so many youth sports especially in America. “We love winners in this country.” They reveal how the lines between tough coaching and abuse are blurred and how easy we’ll turn a blind eye when our team is winning. Those are the harmful mindsets that can allow things like this to take place. “Athlete A” is streaming now on Netflix.

VERDICT – 4 STARS

First Glance: “Reminiscence”

June 3, 2021 by Keith Garlington

Hugh Jackman and Rebecca Ferguson? SOLD! That’s all I needed to be onboard with the new sci-fi thriller “Reminiscence”. The film is written and directed by Lisa Joy, the co-creator of television’s “Westworld”. It also stars Thandiwe Newton, Cliff Curtis, Daniel Wu, Natalie Martinez, and Angela Sarafyan. After a number of delays (for a wide variety of reasons) “Reminiscence” final gets a solid release date and its very first trailer. It’s looking really good.

While watching this first full look at the film you can’t help but notice its variety of genre flavors – action, romance, classic noir, science-fiction, mystery. It’s all here. In a flooded near-future Miami, Jackman runs a business where he takes people on “a journey through memory“. He falls for a mysterious yet alluring new client (Ferguson) who suddenly vanishes. Unwilling to accept her disappearance, Jackman ignores the warnings of his colleagues and begins digging into the woman’s complex and dangerous past. The film looks fascinating and the idea of retracing one’s memories is ripe with suspenseful potential. This definitely has my attention.

“Reminiscence” opens August 20th in theaters and on HBO Max. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

REVIEW: “Undine” (2021)

June 3, 2021 by Keith Garlington

Needless to say my expectations for the new Christian Petzold film were through the roof. The German filmmaker’s last two movies, 2014’s “Phoenix” and 2018’s “Transit”, are both snugly among my favorites from the last decade. His latest “Undine” has finally come to the States courtesy of IFC Films. And while it might not pack the punch of his meatier predecessors, there’s still a lot to like about this beguiling romantic fantasy.

“Undine” is as enigmatic as it’s titular character; a movie that moves to the rhythms of a love story but that has much more simmering under its surface. It’s a fairytale of sorts that keeps one foot firmly planted in the real world while routinely blurring the lines between reality and fantasy. What story we get is built around a captivating yet elusive mystery that hints at the mythological and supernatural. But Petzold is a crafty filmmaker who blends an assortment of ideas underneath his film’s rather simple facade.

The movie opens on a woman named Undine (as played by new Petzold favorite Paula Beer), her very name hearkening back to an old European myth and offering us our first hint of what the movie may be going for. We see her sitting at a café getting the news from her boyfriend Johannes (Jacob Matschenz) that he has been unfaithful. He’s ready to end their relationship but she hits him with a inauspicious warning, “If you leave me, I’ll have to kill you. You know that.” It’s a startling caveat that could be born out of either heartbreak or obligation. Petzold takes his time revealing which.

Undine orders Johannes to wait at the café as she goes across the street to the city museum where she works as a historian and guide. There she gives talks to out-of-towners on the history of Berlin’s urban development, something that Petzold slyly sews into the fabric of his story. You can tell Undine has given her presentation countless times before, but this time her mind is clearly back at the café with Johannes. By the time she gets back Johannes is gone but she does meet Christoph (Franz Rogowski), an industrial diver and underwater welder who attended and was taken by Undine’s talk.

After what turns out to be a soggy first meeting, a spark is ignited that quickly puts thoughts of Johannes out of Undine’s mind. Beer and Rogowski have a sparkling chemistry and their warm and simple romance, though clouded with a tinge of doom, takes Petzold’s story in a unique direction. When we first meet Undine she can barely hold back tears. With Christoph she gets to re-experience something akin to happiness as their romance unfolds through a series sweet and tender meetings.

But this is a Christian Petzold film meaning there is an underside to the story waiting to be unearthed. Several other of the filmmaker’s interests can be found throughout the movie such as his affection for history and having the past and present rub shoulders in a number of compelling ways. All of it together defies any traditional reading of the film which all but ensures this won’t be a commercial success. But fans of Petzold’s distinctive oeuvre will find plenty to admire even if his latest doesn’t reach the heights of his previous films.

“Undine” challenges its audience to wonder while allowing us plenty of room to make our own conclusions. The film’s restraint is both remarkable and curious. In one sense you can’t help but appreciate the quiet subtleties of Petzold’s storytelling and the trust he places in his audience. In another sense you can’t help but wish he had went deeper and pushed us even more. The emotional closeups, the beautifully framed shots of the city, the haunting blue-green underwater scenes – they all immerse us into a world as romantic as it is mystifying. And with Beer and Rogowski so perfectly rooted at the movie’s core, it’s hard not to get lost in Petzold’s wonderfully murky fantasy. “Undine” opens June 4th in theaters and on VOD.