Review: The Nun

Image courtesy of Warner Bros.

During her brief appearances in previous "Conjuring" films, the titular villain of this picture made for a creepy presence. In a particularly unnerving moment from one of those films, a young boy points down a hallway and asks Vera Farmiga's character about a figure standing in a hallway. It's one of those moments that might make you jump out of your seat.

In the film "The Nun," which was directed by Corin Hardy, the filmmakers try to recreate that vibe - over and over again - but with little traction. Not only is this film not particularly scary - that is, unless you're unsettled by irritating jump scares - but it also utilizes the same setup continually. And the thing is, that setup is a lazy one to begin with, so the most horrifying moment in the picture occurs when you look at your watch and realize you're not even halfway through.

The picture opens with a young nun taking her life by hanging herself, seemingly to prevent from becoming a vessel for a sinister being who is, you guessed it, dressed up like a nun. A priest (Demian Bechir) and novitiate (Taissa Farmiga) who has visions travel to Romania to visit the abbey where the suicide took place, and attempt to solve the mystery of the nun's death. They are accompanied by a randy Frenchman (Jonas Bloquet), who had discovered the body.

Upon arriving at the abbey, the characters are attacked in graveyards by malevolent spirits, have visions of evil and spot numerous figures dressed as nuns who might, in fact, be evil beings. The filmmakers have two basic scare tactics in their wheelhouse: the jump scare (for instance, that scene from the preview in which Farmiga's character is being followed down a hallway by a nun and then accosted by another out of the blue) and sequences in which figures - whose faces are obscured by shadow - stand still long enough for the film's heroes to approach them and get up close, so they can suddenly snarl or show themselves to be corpses.

In other words, "The Nun" is cheesier than it is scary. I'll give the filmmakers credit where it's due - the locations are genuinely spooky and there are a few scenes from previous "Conjuring" movies that are spliced in here to give some context and set the stage for this story. But you know that you've run out of ideas before you've even started when some of the redeeming moments in a picture involve borrowed footage from other movies.

James Wan's first two "Conjuring" movies are pretty frightening and display filmmaking mastery. The "Annabelle" sequels have their moments - that spooky Manson-like opening to the first film - but are otherwise a step down from their predecessor and, this picture is a step down from those sequels. "The Nun" is lacking in motivation and, for the most part, scares. There have been a number of good horror movies as of late and, in comparison, this one feels slightly creaky.