The Nun II, 2023.
Directed by Michael Chaves.
Starring Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet, Bonnie Aarons, Storm Reid, Katelyn Rose Downey, Anna Popplewell, Suzanne Bertish, Léontine d’Oncieu, Anouk Darwin Homewood, Peter Hudson, Tamar Baruch, Natalia Safran, Maxime Elias-Menet, Alexandra Gentil, Margot Morris, Pascal Aubert, David Horovitch, Paul Spera, Aaron-Jon North, and Kate Colebrook.
SYNOPSIS:
1956 – France. A priest is murdered. An evil is spreading. The sequel follows Sister Irene as she once again comes face-to-face with Valak, the demon nun.
This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, The Nun II wouldn’t exist.
Director Michael Chaves is apparently seen as a jack-of-all-trades Conjuring Universe filmmaker for hire, having broken into the franchise with The Curse of La Llorona and recently helmed the third entry in The Conjuring series. The problem is that they weren’t scary, memorable, or stimulating, so it’s unclear why Warner Bros. and James Wan thought he would be a good fit for The Nun II, a sequel to arguably the most forgettable of the cinematic universe, something that shows considering the film is constantly going out of its way to remind viewers what happened.
It is a direct sequel with Taissa Farmiga reprising her role as Sister Irene, wrongly assuming that her days of fighting back against Valak (Bonnie Aarons), a demon disguised as a nun, are over. Four years later, Sister Irene works at another convent, with her current goal being to encourage Sister Debra (Storm Reid) to try out a confession. Debra is given a tragic backstory with unpleasant reasons for being at this convent, but for a new character, she mostly comes across as an afterthought sidekick. No compelling bond develops between these two; it’s all white noise as they travel from location to location, inevitably getting wrapped up in supernatural terror.
Meanwhile, there are mysterious deaths across France of those involved with the Catholic Church with Sister Irene and Sister Debra analyzing grisly photographs and visiting glorified religious librarians for information that might help unearth what and why this is happening. Their mission eventually takes them to a boarding school where Frenchie (once again played by Jonas Bloquet), a handyman now going by the name Maurice, starts fixing the place up and getting acquainted with the residents. Among these characters is a bullied young girl, Sophie (Katelyn Rose Downey), and one of the teachers (Anna Popplewell), although nothing engaging comes from these connections.
However, Maurice is also possessed by Valak, freely taking control and leaving the body. And while there is a decently disturbing idea in a demon invading a religious boarding school, it also doesn’t amount to anything suspenseful or remotely entertaining until the final 20 minutes, which, while nonsensical and without payoffs for certain introduced aspects, is at the very least, chaotic (M3gan screenwriter Akela Cooper’s influence is felt here, credited with coming up with the story and co-writing alongside Ian Goldberg and Richard Naing.)
Unfortunately, the first two-thirds are aggressively tedious, relying on pointless jump scares (terribly constructed considering how telegraphed and obvious they are) to push the film along. There are no well-written characters here or compelling character dynamics, and it often feels as if even the filmmakers don’t know how to fill the time before the two sets of characters converge. For a film that spends so much of its time on the characters, they are given almost nothing to do.
The Nun II has the thinnest possible plot outline and comes without any real purpose, whether as a standalone story or tied to Conjuring lore. Choosing what feels lazier is tough: its approach to horror or the empty screenwriting. If there is a third one, it’s guaranteed that there will be just as many references and expository dialogue to remind you what happened here.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ / Movie: ★ ★
Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
Originally published September 8, 2023. Updated September 10, 2023.
