The following piece was written during the 2023 Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movie material being covered here wouldn’t exist.

Plot

New Line Cinema brings you the horror thriller “The Nun II,” the next chapter in the story of “The Nun,” the highest grossing entry in the juggernaut $2 billion “The Conjuring” Universe.

1956 – France. A priest is murdered. An evil is spreading. The sequel to the worldwide smash hit follows Sister Irene as she once again comes face-to-face with Valak, the demon nun.

Taissa Farmiga (“The Nun,” “The Gilded Age”) returns as Sister Irene, joined by Jonas Bloquet (“Tirailleurs,” “The Nun”), Storm Reid (“The Last of Us,” “The Suicide Squad”), Anna Popplewell (“Fairytale,” “The Chronicles of Narnia” trilogy) and Bonnie Aarons (reprising her role from “The Nun”), surrounded by an ensemble cast of international talent.

Michael Chaves (“The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It”) directs, from a screenplay by Ian Goldberg & Richard Naing (“Eli,” “The Autopsy of Jane Doe”) and Akela Cooper (“M3GAN,” “Malignant”), with a story by Cooper, based on characters created by James Wan & Gary Dauberman.

The Safran Company’s Peter Safran and Atomic Monster’s James Wan produce, continuing their collaboration as filmmakers on all of the previous “Conjuring” films. “The Nun II” is executive produced by Richard Brener, Dave Neustadter, Victoria Palmeri, Gary Dauberman, Michael Clear, Judson Scott and Michael Polaire.

Joining Chaves behind the camera are director of photography Tristan Nyby (“The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It,” “The Dark and the Wicked”), production designer Stéphane Cressend (“Les Vedettes,” “The French Dispatch”), editor Gregory Plotkin (2022’s “Scream,” “Get Out”), visual effects producer Sophie A. Leclerc (“Finch,” “Lucy”) and costume designer Agnès Béziers (“Oxygen,” “The Breitner Commando”), with composer Marco Beltrami (2022’s “Scream,” ”Venom: Let There Be Carnage”) providing the score.

“The Conjuring” Universe is the highest grossing horror franchise in history with $2+ billion worldwide. Globally, four of “The Conjuring” Universe titles have earned more than $300 million worldwide each (“The Nun,” $366 million; “The Conjuring 2,” $322 million; “The Conjuring,” $320 million; “Annabelle: Creation,” $307 million), and all seven have each grossed more than $200 million. “The Nun” is the top-earning film in the franchise, with more than $366 million worldwide.

New Line Cinema presents an Atomic Monster / Safran Company production, “The Nun II,” distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is set to open in North America on September 8, 2023 and internationally beginning 6 September, 2023.

via: WarnerBros.com

The Conjuring Universe

Here is the recommended order to watch the movies that form part of the Conjuring Universe.

The Nun (2018)

When a young nun at a cloistered abbey in Romania takes her own life, a priest with a haunted past and a novitiate on the threshold of her final vows are sent by the Vatican to investigate. Together, they uncover the order’s unholy secret. Risking not only their lives but their faith and their very souls, they confront a malevolent force in the form of a demonic nun.

Annabelle: Creation (2017)

Samuel and Elle embed their daughter’s spirit into a doll, only to realise it is a demon. Years later, they open their home to a nun and six orphan girls, one of whom finds the doll.

The Nun 2 (2023)

In 1956 France, a priest is violently murdered, and Sister Irene begins to investigate. She once again comes face-to-face with a powerful evil.

Kindly see the review below.

Annabelle (2014)

John and Mia Form are attacked by members of a satanic cult that uses their old doll as a conduit to make their life miserable. This unleashes a string of paranormal events in the Forms’ residence.

The Conjuring (2013)

The Perron family moves into a farmhouse where they experience paranormal phenomena. They consult demonologists, Ed and Lorraine Warren, to help them get rid of the evil entity haunting them.

Annabelle Comes Home (2019)

Judy and her babysitter are left alone in her house after her parents leave to investigate a case. However, an unexpected guest sets Annabelle free, unleashing demonic activity in the house.

The Curse of La Llorona (2019)

When Patricia is found endangering the lives of her sons, Anna puts her behind bars. However, when Anna’s own children are endangered, she suspects that there is more than human involvement at play.

The Conjuring 2 (2016)

Peggy, a single mother of four children, seeks the help of occult investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren when she and her children witness strange, paranormal events in their house.

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)

Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren take on one of the most sensational cases of their careers after a cop stumbles upon a dazed and bloodied young man walking down the road. Accused of murder, the suspect claims demonic possession as his defense, forcing the Warrens into a supernatural inquiry unlike anything they’ve ever seen before.

Movie Review

The review has been written in such a way to not spoil the movie for you, the reader.

The Nun 2 delivers a spectacular sequel and continuation of its predecessor, The Nun. Taissa Farmiga plays her part to perfection, namely that of sister Irene. Her performance kept me glued to the screen as you feel the emotion and fear as she walks the path to ultimately face off against the demonic nun, Valak. The make-up of Bonnie Aarons, Valak / Demon Nun was done brilliantly, it really delivered a scare every time she appeared on-screen.

Storm Reid joins this movie as Sister Debra, supportive role to that of Taissa’s Sister Irene. I really enjoyed the energy she brought to her role. The music delivers a scary ambiance and the visuals was just amazing. Many scenes require you to focus or else you miss the horror elements. Some cinemas may offer the movie in 4DX, and I highly recommend watching it in that format because of the sound effects and visuals.

The movie concludes in a mysterious way, giving you the sense that the story is far from over. I am hopeful we get to see Sister Irene in future again. I highly recommend watching the other movies in the Conjuring Universe, in order for you as the viewer to have a solid background to the story. There is a mid-credits scene that provides for some continuity into the rest of the Conjuring Universe. The movie trailer didn’t spoil any key moments from the movie.

I rate this movie a 4.5 out of 5. This movie conjures a scare worthy of watching and slots in perfectly in the Conjuring Universe. This movie is second to “Nun” in terms of providing a scare worthy of remembering and I’m excited to see what James Wan conjures up next!

Catch the trailer, and watch The Nun 2 at a cinema near you!

I highly recommend watching the other Insidious movies in the following order before watching Insidious: The Red Door. The recommended order is Insidious: Chapter 3, Insidious: The Last Key, Insidious and lastly, Insidious: Chapter 2. 

Insidious: Chapter 3 came out during 2015. The story starts way before the unforgettable haunting of the Lambert family. Paranormal investigators Tucker and Specs team up with the psychic Elise to help a teenage girl contact her late mother, and Elise is forced to venture back into The Further where she finds a ruthless supernatural entity craving the souls of the living, known as the Man Who Can’t Breathe. The Bride In Black and the Lipstick-Face Demon make an appearance as well. 

Insidious: The Last Key came out during 2018. Lin Shaye reprises her role as the parapsychologist Dr. Elise Rainier, who returns to her family home to face the unrelenting demons that have plagued her since childhood. We learn about her parents and how she opened the door to the spirit world. Accompanied by her two investigative partners, Specs and Tucker, Elise must delve deeper into the Further to unlock the mystery and destroy her greatest fear. She faces off Keyface who is able to control people and feeds off both hatred and fear.

The first Insidious movie came out during 2010. Insidious is the terrifying story of the Lambert family who, shortly after moving, discovers that dark spirits have possessed their home and that their son has inexplicably fallen into a coma. Trying to escape the haunting and save their son, Josh and Renai move again only to realize that it was not their house that was haunted, but their son, Dalton. Josh has to enter the Further to help save his son from the Lipstick-Face Demon, but gets possessed by the Bride in Black on the way back. The movie ends with the now-possessed Josh strangling Elise.

Insidious: Chapter 2 came out during 2013. The terrifying sequel to Insidious follows the haunted Lambert family as they seek to uncover the mysterious childhood secret that has left them dangerously connected to the spirit world. They must rely on familiar allies to exile the demons that follow them and unearth the secret before the evil continues its deadly rampage. Viewers learn more about the Bride in Black, who is in fact Parker Crane, a man who murdered many young women.

The movies had amazing performances by Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne and Lin Shaye. The jump scares and hair-raising ambience keep you glued to the screen until the last second. I can’t wait to go watch Insidious: The Red Door in cinemas. Make sure to watch the first four movies and catch the trailer online.

Hunting season begins in October 2023 with Kraven the Hunter bracing the big screen. Sergei Kravinoff is on a mission to prove that he is the greatest hunter in the world and who knows who be the main targets will be in the movie. We experience his rise to the top before the notorious rivalry with Spider-Man.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson plays the titular role. Make sure to catch the red band trailer online.

A Brief Look At The Biography of Kraven the Hunter

Sergei Kravinoff was born and raised in Volgograd and St. Petersburg. His alcoholic father would beat him and Sergei would in turn take out his frustrations on Dmitri, his half-brother. The Bolshevik Revolution forces the Kravinoff family to emigrate. Sergei loses both his parents and is forced to learn to survive on his own. He travels as a stowaway aboard ships and trains from country to country. He discovers his passion for hunting in Africa. He also changes his name from Sergei to Kraven.

He becomes a wealthy game hunter because of his remarkable hunting skills. He steals a witch doctor’s potion during his time in Africa which enhances his physical prowess and abilities to hunt. The potion helps to decelerate the ageing process, thus Kraven looks like a thirty year old man, even though he is much older. He is stronger, faster, agile and can jump very far. You can find rifles, darts, axes, spears, whips, gas bombs and even blowguns in his weapon storage. However, he comes with many tricks up his sleeve such as poison-tipped teeth in his belt and electronics in his lion’s head vest.

He forms a partnership with Dmitri to help with trading animal skins and ivory that he acquires during his hunting sprees. However, big game isn’t the only targets on Kraven’s list. He meets his match, the web-slinging hero, Spider-Man but Spidey evades him most of the time. Kraven joins up with Dmitri and even the Sinister Six at a later stage to take on Spiderman. He is no stranger to the Avengers. He joins Dum Dum Dugan’s original Avengers’ Initiative alongside Nick Fury, Namora, Sabretooth, Ulysses Bloodstone, Dominic Fortune, and Silver Sable.

Kraven shared the herbs with Dmitri to give them both an edge in combat, especially when squaring off against Spider-Man. He saw the friendly neighborhood hero as a monstrosity and fueled by both fear and rage never quit taking on the wallcrawler, but Spider-Man secured a win over both Kraven and Dmitri, now known as the infamous Chameleon. This resulted in them being deported back to Europe, but Kraven and Dimitri found their way back to America. Doc Ock recruits Kraven and other members into the Sinister Six, but even this team is no match for Spider-Man and this results in their capture and imprisonment.

Kraven is eager to do jobs for other famous villains such as the Green Goblin and Mister Sinister. His job with Mister Sinister requires him to obtain DNA from other mutants. This physical altercation results in another face-off with Spider-Man. A face-off against the Vulture resulted in both Kraven and Vulture being captured by Spider-Man. Kraven even landed in hot water with law enforcement and the Fantastic Four when he got caught supplying hallucinogens to other important role-players in New York.

The above are mere highlights of Kraven’s stories and meant to serve as an appetizer.

Final thoughts

I’m honestly excited for this production and can’t wait to see how it links to the wider Sony Spider-Man’s Universe. Looking forward to all the possible action and fight scenes. And will we get to see Spider-Man? Let’s wait for hunting season to begin at a cinema near you.