1 of 5 | Vera Farmiga stars in “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” in theaters Friday. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
The strength of the Conjuring films has always been the family dynamic at the heart of the scares. The Conjuring: Last Rites, in theaters Friday, furthers both the family and supernatural elements.
Last Rites opens with a flashback to 1964, when a young Ed (Orion Smith) and Lorraine Warren (Madison Lawlor) investigate a case that compromises Lorraine’s pregnancy. The couple’s daughter Judy has already appeared in past films, so it’s not a spoiler that she pulls through.
By 1986, the Warrens (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) are trying to retire. Their paranormal lectures are sparsely attended and they face snarky criticism in a post-Ghostbusters world. The Smurl family requests their help, but the Warrens really try to avoid taking on another case.
Ed and Lorraine ultimately help the Smurls; however, the circumstances that lead them to assist the family have more depth than the usual rinse and repeat sequel.
The Warrens are correct that they can’t help every family. Presuming the real-life Ed and Lorraine investigated cases that were in fact paranormal, which the Conjuring movies enthusiastically presume, the pair would burn out if they didn’t set boundaries.
It’s also relevant how the world won’t let them retire. If it weren’t paranormal cases, it would be some other demands.
Ed and Lorraine’s love for each other sets the Conjuring films apart from other exorcism movies led by priests, and this extends to their entire family.
In the movie’s present day, Judy (Mia Tomlinson) is dating Tony (Ben Hardy) and her parents have different reactions. Lorraine is more accepting of Tony than Ed but both struggle with letting their daughter go, especially haunted by almost losing her once.
The Smurls are a strong family too, albeit one who only gets half of the fourth entry in the franchise to establish itself. The Smurls have a household of eight where the siblings tease each other but the love is clear.
As first-time haunting victims, the Smurls have different reactions and levels of belief when unexplainable events start happening. Because there are eight of them, the family can’t just leave the house and check into a motel.
Judy is actually a catalyst for bringing the Warrens and Smurls together. She’s struggled with paranormal visions her entire life, and suppressing them as Lorraine taught her to isn’t working.
Judy’s struggle is also relevant. Whether it’s emotional wounds or supernatural demons, one must confront and deal with their issues if they hope to move on. Welcoming Tony into the family also makes him integral to the climactic exorcism.
When the demons plague the Smurls or the Warrens, they are scary set pieces worthy of the Conjuring films. Judy’s wedding dress fitting offers a unique setting for a demonic vision.
The demons like to taunt the Smurls before getting to the actual scare. So they’ll pull a phone cord to lure Mrs. Smurl (Rebecca Calder) into a dark cabinet or levitate a child’s Suzy doll.
The camera holds the shot, panning to capture movement and letting it all play out before the audience’s eyes. Yet, it still only shows enough to suggest the horror and not be gratuitous.
The Warrens have established procedures for dealing with possessed artifacts, but the demons unwind them piece by piece. Enough of the supernatural is unexplained or just unknowable to remain creepy.
If Last Rites truly is the final Conjuring movie as advertised, it would be the first franchise in industry history to follow through. Freddy’s Dead was not, in fact, The Final Nightmare, and Friday the 13th had two “final” chapters, neither of which were the most recent entry.
Judy and Tony could certainly lead a spinoff, even if they didn’t join the family business in real life. But, if the studio decides to put the Conjuring cash cow out to pasture, it would go out on an emotional and terrifying high.
Fred Topel, who attended film school at Ithaca College, is a UPI entertainment writer based in Los Angeles. He has been a professional film critic since 1999, a Rotten Tomatoes critic since 2001, and a member of the Television Critics Association since 2012 and the Critics Choice Association since 2023. Read more of his work in Entertainment.
