I have two words to sum this movie up...........
JUMBLED. TONE.
The Nun is a 2018 supernatural (apparently) horror movie that forms part of 'The Conjuring' cinematic universe, starring Taissa Farmiga and Jonas Bloquet.
I actually can't remember the last time I was this disappointed by a film. I LOVE 'The Conjuring' movies and 'The Conjuring 2', which gives us our first taste of the Nun in question, scared the living shit out of me to the point where I won't watch it unless I have someone with me and its daylight. Even the first 'Annabelle' isn't that bad compared to this and that's saying something.
Before I start tearing this a new one I am going to heap some praise on it because after all, there is good in everything and this is no exception. The cinematography is beautiful, there were some amazing aerial shots of the Nun's praying in the abbey where the composition and angles were outstanding. The locations used are out of this world, I spent the whole time trying to spot the tell tale signs of a green screen but failed miserably and that's because they used an actual castle in Transylvania, which is now on my list of places to go! I always think of Eastern Europe as being some sort of barren wasteland but its actually quite luscious and green in most areas (excluding Chernobyl of course :-|) which made for some gorgeous external shots of the countryside.
The cast were doing the best they could with what they had been given and Taissa Farmiga is an adequate actress (she is also the younger sister of Vera who plays Elaine Warren in the other movies) She was naturally innocent and endearing but if like me, you are 'American Horror Story' obsessed, all you see is Violet Harmon putting on a bit of a fancy accent, in fact I was waiting for her to just start shouting 'CROATOAAAN. CROATOAAAAN' in the Nun's face ha ha ha she didn't of course but still, she did a good job with the shower of shit she was faced with.
The other two male leads were nothing to shout about but like Taissa they did the best they could I suppose, its just unfortunate that one of them is the sole reason this movie was so disappointing but I have to point out again, that it was through no fault of his own, after all, an actor is only as good as the words he is given.
The makeup, costume, set design, effects etc were flawless but then we are now in an era where Michael Fassbender can kiss himself soooo I wouldn't expect anything less to be fair.
Now for the slagging off.........
Unless a horror movie is a total gore fest (which I love) then I need to be scared and I have to admit that there were a couple of moments where I jumped out of my skin but when I say I need to be scared I mean I need to feel that exhausting tension that makes you hold your breath and wish you were anywhere else and unfortunately, that didn't happen. I had hope for a few moments there but then bloody 'Frenchie' came along and started cracking jokes. The writer basically made him into some sort of shit Indiana Jones who came to save the day with his sarcasm and his french Canadian patriotism. You can't have jumbled tone in a supernatural horror movie you just cannot, it ruins it. Seasoned horror movie producers should know this and should hang their heads in shame. Or maybe research who they hire to write the thing?? His filmography is like a who's who of campy horror.
The story line was overblown and a little bit stupid to be honest, the ending was a bit of a slap in the face for the audience because it was too far fetched even for a horror movie but then after being spoon fed the plot for most of the movie I'm not sure why I expected better from it.
This is basically a gothic horror comedy masquerading as supernatural horror. All the elements are there but it just doesn't work and also - its not funny. All I could think of was 'Dracula Dead and Loving It' with a bit of 'Lesbian Vampire Killers' thrown in so there is a chance that my brain is too full of Mel Brooks to take anything seriously and I am wrong here. Doubt it very much though ;-)
Much like I always say about 'Suicide Squad', if I knew how to edit a film then we would have a cracking movie to watch but I don't, so we're stuck with this disappointment. I would still say watch it to keep up with the franchise if you're a fan but don't waste money on a cinema outing.
JUMBLED. TONE.
The Nun is a 2018 supernatural (apparently) horror movie that forms part of 'The Conjuring' cinematic universe, starring Taissa Farmiga and Jonas Bloquet.
I actually can't remember the last time I was this disappointed by a film. I LOVE 'The Conjuring' movies and 'The Conjuring 2', which gives us our first taste of the Nun in question, scared the living shit out of me to the point where I won't watch it unless I have someone with me and its daylight. Even the first 'Annabelle' isn't that bad compared to this and that's saying something.
Before I start tearing this a new one I am going to heap some praise on it because after all, there is good in everything and this is no exception. The cinematography is beautiful, there were some amazing aerial shots of the Nun's praying in the abbey where the composition and angles were outstanding. The locations used are out of this world, I spent the whole time trying to spot the tell tale signs of a green screen but failed miserably and that's because they used an actual castle in Transylvania, which is now on my list of places to go! I always think of Eastern Europe as being some sort of barren wasteland but its actually quite luscious and green in most areas (excluding Chernobyl of course :-|) which made for some gorgeous external shots of the countryside.
The cast were doing the best they could with what they had been given and Taissa Farmiga is an adequate actress (she is also the younger sister of Vera who plays Elaine Warren in the other movies) She was naturally innocent and endearing but if like me, you are 'American Horror Story' obsessed, all you see is Violet Harmon putting on a bit of a fancy accent, in fact I was waiting for her to just start shouting 'CROATOAAAN. CROATOAAAAN' in the Nun's face ha ha ha she didn't of course but still, she did a good job with the shower of shit she was faced with.
The other two male leads were nothing to shout about but like Taissa they did the best they could I suppose, its just unfortunate that one of them is the sole reason this movie was so disappointing but I have to point out again, that it was through no fault of his own, after all, an actor is only as good as the words he is given.
The makeup, costume, set design, effects etc were flawless but then we are now in an era where Michael Fassbender can kiss himself soooo I wouldn't expect anything less to be fair.
Now for the slagging off.........
Unless a horror movie is a total gore fest (which I love) then I need to be scared and I have to admit that there were a couple of moments where I jumped out of my skin but when I say I need to be scared I mean I need to feel that exhausting tension that makes you hold your breath and wish you were anywhere else and unfortunately, that didn't happen. I had hope for a few moments there but then bloody 'Frenchie' came along and started cracking jokes. The writer basically made him into some sort of shit Indiana Jones who came to save the day with his sarcasm and his french Canadian patriotism. You can't have jumbled tone in a supernatural horror movie you just cannot, it ruins it. Seasoned horror movie producers should know this and should hang their heads in shame. Or maybe research who they hire to write the thing?? His filmography is like a who's who of campy horror.
The story line was overblown and a little bit stupid to be honest, the ending was a bit of a slap in the face for the audience because it was too far fetched even for a horror movie but then after being spoon fed the plot for most of the movie I'm not sure why I expected better from it.
This is basically a gothic horror comedy masquerading as supernatural horror. All the elements are there but it just doesn't work and also - its not funny. All I could think of was 'Dracula Dead and Loving It' with a bit of 'Lesbian Vampire Killers' thrown in so there is a chance that my brain is too full of Mel Brooks to take anything seriously and I am wrong here. Doubt it very much though ;-)
Much like I always say about 'Suicide Squad', if I knew how to edit a film then we would have a cracking movie to watch but I don't, so we're stuck with this disappointment. I would still say watch it to keep up with the franchise if you're a fan but don't waste money on a cinema outing.