Director: Michael Chaves
Writers: Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing, David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick
Cast: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Mia Tomlinson, Ben Hardy, Elliot Cowan, Beau Gadsdon, Rebecca Calder, Kíla Lord Cassidy, Molly Cartwright, Tilly Walker, Steve Coulter

It’s the end of the line, folks. At least, it is so for this branch of The Conjuring horror franchise. Starting in 2013, the series has gone from strength to apparent strength, with its sequels and spin-offs that have kept audiences coming back for more, sadomasochists that we are. With the series being based on the cases taken on by the real-life paranormal investigating couple Ed and Lorraine Warren, The Conjuring: Last Rites tells of one of their most personal stories to date (though greatly exaggerated and with tons of poetic license, of course). Is it going to leave the franchise dead and buried, or is it a satisfying end to this side of The Conjuring universe, as well as Ed and Lorraine’s onscreen careers?

In 1986, Jack (Cowan) and Janet (Calder) Smurl find their house haunted and their family constantly under attack from apparent evil spirits. Upon hearing of the Smurls’ plight through the media, Judy Warren (Tomlinson), daughter of Ed (Wilson) and Lorraine (Farmiga) Warren, heads to the Smurl house to see if she can help, owing to her own psychic abilities that she likely inherited from Lorraine. Ed and Lorraine, self-declared as retired from investigating paranormal activity and concerned about Judy, head to the Smurls’ to stop her, along with Judy’s new fiancé Tony (Hardy). But on their arrival, the Warrens find they can’t ignore this haunting, as it is one that affects them personally.

The Conjuring franchise has been quite up and down, with some entries being stronger than others, but fortunately it ends on a relative high. At least, just as high as it began. There are some overt attempts to be frightening that are a little off-putting and, frankly, silly, as though the director/writers were playing it safe by relying on tropes, but they are balanced fairly well with more subtle scenes that are less ‘scary’ and more ‘creepy’. The story itself interweaves the Warren family’s personal life with their supernatural work to create something that feels personal to not only the characters, but to audiences who have followed them through their (onscreen) life, giving it some depth and a reason for the audience to care. This is further helped along with a prologue to the film that sets up the Warrens’ personal connection to the Smurl haunting. In contrast, the ending felt rather abrupt and again fell back on a cliché to bring this chapter of the Warrens’ story to a close. Perhaps a classic case of ‘it’s not the destination, it’s the journey’.

The series has clearly been inspired by other horror films throughout, but Last Rites appears to take direct influence from The Exorcist in some of its shots, settings and characters, which ironically helped it to stand out from its predecessors. In particular, one scene involving Father Gordon (a character who makes regular appearances throughout The Conjuring universe) gives immediate Exorcist vibes, and is perhaps one of the darkest scenes in the entire franchise. You can also see some fun cameos in one of the film’s final scenes (a clear indication of a series coming to an end). Having director Michael Chaves back to direct this final instalment was the right call, considering his knowledge of the series and thus his commitment to ensuring it brought things to a satisfying close while also retaining the level of horror and characterisation it has come to be known for.

The soul of the series has always been Ed and Lorraine as characters, and the chemistry between Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as actors has always been the heart. If you don’t believe in the religious or paranormal side of things, you can at least believe in the relationship between Ed and Lorraine. Wilson and Farmiga are strong together onscreen, but also make an impact individually when allowing Ed and Lorraine to do their own thing. Mia Tomlinson, the latest actress to portray Judy, fits in nicely to the Warren family dynamic and her performance in turn strengthens Farmiga’s performance as Judy’s mother. Hardy’s Tony could easily have been a character added for the sake of it, but fortunately his fourth-wheeling indeed keeps the vehicle from falling apart and adds some stability, with Hardy’s performance showcasing Tony’s genuine care quite effortlessly (as a side note, both Tomlinson and Hardy do pretty good American accents, for the most part). Elliot Cowan and Rebecca Calder are a solid pairing as the Smurl parents, and each of the young female actors portraying the Smurl girls give good performances, particularly Beau Gadsdon as a very frightened Dawn Smurl.

With Lorraine Warren having been a consultant for the films and having passed away in 2019, quite some time after Ed in 2006, it makes sense to bring this side of the franchise to a close and allow the characters to retire peacefully, however I would be surprised if we didn’t see Ed and Lorraine make their own cameos in further branches of The Conjuring universe. The Annabelle and The Nun films have extended the stories within the main vein of the series, but they have lacked that personal nuance The Conjuring films have. It’s unclear right now as to where things will go next; will we follow what Judy gets up to? Follow other spirits/demons/people who have featured in the films? Perhaps only James Wan knows, but for better or worse, it’ll be interesting to see what direction they decide to take.

Check out DOTT’s Film Club – The Conjuring to find out more.