I sit in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with host Bill Carroll to talk the new movies coming to theatres including the habit-forming “The Nun II,” the Grecian antics of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3” and the documentary “American: An Odyssey to 1947.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
“The Nun II,” a new horror film starring Taissa Farmiga, and now playing in theatres, is a sequel to a movie that was a prequel to the sequel of 2013’s “The Conjuring.” Confused? Not to worry, despite its convoluted pedigree, all you need to know is that “The Nun II” brings back one of the creepiest characters of recent memory.
The follow-up to 2018’s “The Nun,” the new R rated (for violent content and terror) movie is set in 1956, France. Farmiga returns as the determined and devout demon warrior Sister Irene. When a priest is murdered in spectacular supernatural fashion, Sister Irene investigates, sensing the evil handiwork of her old adversary Valak (Bonnie Aarons). Once an angel, Valak was rejected by God and sent to Hell before resurfacing to spread malevolence while disguised as a nun.
“What we’re going after,” says Sister Irene, “is unlike anything you’ve ever seen before.”
As Irene zeroes in on Valak, her investigation leads to a French boarding school where Maurice (Jonas Bloquet), who saved her life at the end of the last film, but may now have something to do with the spread of Valak’s reign of terror, works as a handyman. Joined by schoolteacher Marcella (Anna Popplewell), her daughter Sophie (Katelyn Rose Downey) and rebellious novice Sister Debra (Storm Reid), Irene battles to prevent Valak from spreading evil to the world. “I know why it’s here,” Irene says, “I saw what it wants.”
“The Nun II” has atmosphere to burn. The boarding school, which appears to be made up of nothing but long hallways, flickering lights and a decrepit old chapel, provides an effective shadowy backdrop for much of the action. The dark, murky cinematography hangs over the proceedings like a shroud, creating a gloomy vibe that adds to the overall feeling of dread.
Trouble is, Sister Irene’s journey to vanquish Valak is low on actual scares. There are a few pretty good jump scares, some eerie imagery, and the demon in full nun regalia is still an unsettling sight, but the movie is just a little too similar to “The Nun”—it’s another story about Irene and an ancient demon destroying relic—to feel anything but familiar.
The final fifteen minutes, a showdown between the divine and the demonic, is visually interesting and ends the movie with a flourish, but even with the flashy finish, it’s hard not to think that, at this point, “The Nun” franchise is becoming a bad habit.
Richard joins CP24 to have a look at new movies coming to VOD, streaming services and theatres including the inspirational horse movie “Spirit Untamed,” the latest from The Conjuring Universe, “The Devil Made Me Do It,” the rock doc “Rockfield: The Studio on the Farm” and the biopic “Hero: Inspired by the Extraordinary Life & Times of Mr. Ulric Cross.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
Richard and CTV NewsChannel morning show host Jennifer Burke chat up the weekend’s big releases, the inspirational horse movie “Spirit Untamed,” the latest from The Conjuring Universe, “The Devil Made Me Do It” and the rock doc “Rockfield: The Studio on the Farm.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
Richard sits in on the CFRA Ottawa morning show with host Bill Carroll to talk the new movies coming to theatres, VOD and streaming services including the inspirational horse movie “Spirit Untamed,” the latest from The Conjuring Universe, “The Devil Made Me Do It,” the rock doc “Rockfield: The Studio on the Farm” and the biopic “Hero: Inspired by the Extraordinary Life & Times of Mr. Ulric Cross.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
Richard joins NewsTalk 1010’s Jim Richards coast-to-coast-to-coast late night “Showgram” to play the game “Did Richard Crouse like these movies?” This week we talk about the family friendly Dreamworks animated film “Spirit Untamed,” the latest from The Conjuring Universe, “The Devil Made Me Do It” and the rock doc “Rockfield: The Studio on the Farm.”
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
Eight movies into “The Conjuring” franchise the ghostbusting Warrens, Ed and Lorraine, played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, face their most daunting adversary yet. They’ve battled evil in the form of haunted houses, supernatural spirits and a nasty doll named Annabelle, but in “The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It,” now playing in theatres, the married demonologists investigate a murder and a suspect who claims the devil made him do it.
Set in 1981 Connecticut, “The Devil Made Me Do It” is based on the trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, the first case to attempt a defense claim of demonic possession.
The movie begins with a priest and the Warrens performing an exorcism on eight-year-old David Glatzel (Julian Hilliard) that would give Regan MacNeil a run for her money. As all hell breaks loose, the demon leaves the youngster’s body and, after Arne Johnson (Ruairi O’Connor), the boyfriend of David’s sister taunts it, takes control of the older man. “Leave him alone!” Arne says to the demon. “He’s just a little boy you coward! Leave him alone and take me!”
Soon Arne’s behaviour changes and when he stabs his landlord twenty-two times, the Warrens set out to prove he is not guilty by reason of demonic possession. “The court accepts the existence of God every time a witness swears to tell the truth,” Ed says. “I think it’s about time they accept the existence of the Devil.”
When Arne is charged in a Death penalty case, the Warrens spring into action to prove his innocence. “We won’t let him down,” Ed says. As the couple work to discover what is real and what is not, the case presents ever increasing personal danger.
“The Devil Made Me Do It” is more a procedural prompted by Arne’s actions than Arne’s story. He disappears for forty-five minutes or so as the Warrens decipher the mystery surrounding his crime. Director Michael Chaves keeps up the atmosphere of dread with a series of well-executed lighting effects, jump scares and eerie sound cues but, while he delivers some shocks, he knows that the real reason the “Conjuring” movies work is the relationship between Wilson and Farmiga. As the Warrens they are the earthbound anchor who add humanity to the supernatural goings on.
Sure, there is a devilish waterbed—anyone who grew up in the 70s and 80s already knew waterbeds were bad, but the movie makes a convincing case for them as evil as well—and lots of Satanic Panic, but “The Devil Made Me Do It” isn’t all pentagrams and inverted crosses. It flags in the midsection, but by the time the end credits roll the relationship between the demon hunters is front and centre, a testament to the power of love. It may be a cliché but it adds some light to the film’s dark elements and gives Wilson and Farmiga some nice character-building moments.
The Warrens are unlikely horror heroes, but “The Devil Made Me Do It” proves you don’t have to be creepy to deliver the thrills.
Richard speaks to “CTV News at Six” anchor Andria Case about the best movies and television to watch this weekend including “Spiral,” the next chapter of the “Saw” franchise, the Amy Adams Netflix thriller “The Woman in the Window,” the non rom com “Together Together” with Ed Helms.
Watch the whole thing HERE! (Starts at 23:47)
Richard joins CP24 to have a look at new movies coming to VOD, streaming services and theatres including “Spiral,” the Chris Rock reboot of the “Saw” franchise, the Amy Adams thriller “The Woman in the Window,” the non rom com “Together Together” with Ed Helms and Patti Harrison and the trippy folk horror of “In the Earth.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
