An Unnecessary and Forgettable Continuation of the Conjuring Universe

Four years after sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga) imagined having ended Valak (Bonnie Aarons), the long-awaited sequel to “The Nun”, a horror part of the “Conjuring” universe, hits theaters. But was it really necessary? Concludes Tragically not, when “The Nun 2” proves to be a generic and forgettable film within the saga, useful only as a transition piece for an even greater connection between Irene and the Warrens, and despite the good photography and visual effects, “The Nun 2” consecrates what was already expected: this is the weakest end of 'Invocaverso'.

_{Watch the trailer for “The Nun 2” (Reproduction/YouTube/Warner Bros. Pictures Brasil)}

The plot of “The Nun 2”

The year is 1956, four years after the events of the first film, and the location is France. In a parish, a priest is set on fire and other mysterious deaths of clergy begin to occur in several churches. Given the facts, Sister Irene is sought out to fight nun Valak again, and this time, with the help of Sister Debra (Storm Reid), one of the new nuns at the convent where she lives.

In a peaceful religious boarding school lives Maurice (Jonas Bloquet), the boy who was possessed by Valak at the end of “The Nun”. Apparently the unfortunate “hero” leads a peaceful routine like he does everything at school, cultivating friendship with the teacher's daughter with whom he is not so secretly in love and being occasionally humiliated by other students, but the dull environment becomes the central when Irene and Debra investigate and discover the demon's objective, which would be in the old monastery, taken over by Maurice, about to get what he wanted.

Puzzles of conveniences and confusions in the script

During not only the sequence, but also in the pilot, the doubt permeates: what is the Nun's objective? What so precious does she want? And “The Nun 2” strives to resolve this issue, but in a flawed and disorganized way. With a goal that is not so clear, Valak becomes even more powerful and fatal, to the detriment of the leading role of Taissa Farmiga, who despite having a stronger presence than in the previous film, gets lost in the middle of so many pieces in the puzzle assembled by directed by Michael Chaves and written by Akela Cooper.

Throughout the film, the lack of need for so many characters to be summoned in a convenient way for scenes whose purpose is only to impact through jumpscares and which add nothing to the central plot becomes clear. With so many encounters and disagreements to motivate a weak battle between Irene and Valak, the plot becomes tiring and obvious. In an attempt to innovate, they bring a new demon to terrify a small nucleus that also acts as an impact piece. At first it even works, but then we realize that it doesn't make the slightest difference in the story, in addition to disguising the lack of plot for the protagonist and the villain.

_{Scene from “The Nun 2” (Photo: reproduction/Warner Bros. Pictures Brasil)}

Conclusion

In the end, “The Nun 2″ tries to achieve, amid scares, (even good ones) a weak, generic and beaten plot that disappoints, as it was possible to extract a good lemonade from this lemon, having seen the strength and impact of ” Invocaverse.” Using devices such as really good photography and visual effects, the film gets lost in the excess of characters and lines it tries to achieve. It can and will impact part of the audience that watches the genre just to be scared, but it won't hold back those who follow the good performance of films like “The Conjuring” and “Annabelle”. With an average first film and a weak second, “The Nun” becomes the most dispensable and forgettable piece in this multiverse, and can only serve as a transition to reaffirm the connection between the Warrens and the other ends of this triangle.

note: 5/10

Featured photo: Poster for “The Nun 2”. Reproduction/Warner Bros. Pictures