The Conjuring 2

Renowned Connecticut demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga) return with another supernatural case, this time set in England, circa 1977. After their Amityville debacle, clairvoyant Lorraine insists that they take a break, but while working on that notorious investigation at the Lutz home on Long Island, NY, Lorraine had a profoundly disturbing vision of a horrifying nun. When the Catholic Church requests their assessment of a paranormal situation in Great Britain, the pair respond to the evangelical summons, packing their Bible and traveling to North London, where a working-class family has been driven from their home by poltergeists. Peggy Hodgson (Frances O'Connor) is a single mother, raising her four children in crumbling public housing in the borough of Enfield, where her youngest daughter (Madison Wolfe) is tormented by angry undead spirits. The Hodgson family's plight fails to elicit sympathy from their neighbors, and a parapsychologist (Franka Potente) is aggressively doubtful, despite support from an amateur researcher (Simon McBurney). Based on the notorious Enfield Poltergeist case, director James Wan's sequel is yet another haunted house tale with solid jump-scares and demonic surprises. A strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include the behind-the-scenes featurettes “The Enfield Poltergeist: Living the Horror” (13 min.), “Crafting” (10 min.), “Creating Crooked” (7 min.), and “The Sounds of Scary” (7 min.), deleted scenes (7 min.), a “Hollywood's Haunted Stage” segment (5 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is a bonus UltraViolet copy of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for an overlong but often effective chiller.] (S. Granger)