Annabelle-2014
Director John R. Leonetti
Starring Annabelle Wallis
Scott’s Review #186
Reviewed October 17, 2014
Grade: B+
Annabelle (2014) is a classic, edge-of-your-seat ghost story that delivers on creepiness and surprise.
Set in California circa 1969, John (Ward Horton) and Mia Gordon (Annabelle Wallis) are a happy, all-American young couple.
He is a doctor, and she is beautiful and pregnant with their first child. They attend church each Sunday, are friendly with the neighbors, and have a strong sense of community.
As a surprise, John gives Mia a life-sized doll as a gift, adding to her existing collection of interesting dolls.
Soon, strange events begin to occur: a home invasion, a fire, a bizarre elevator experience, and creepy drawings by the neighbor’s children.
The film eventually dives into murkier territory when a strange, religious woman, played by Alfre Woodard, is introduced, and the focus shifts to spirits, soul-taking, and the occult.
What sets Annabelle apart from similar horror contemporaries is its suspense.
As the audience, we know something bad will happen, but we don’t know when.
Unlike many horror films that slice and dice for shock value, Annabelle does not. Instead, the film relies on foreshadowing and anticipation, making the eventual jumps scarier!
Mia’s constant use of an electric sewing machine and Mia’s attentive watching of news coverage of the Manson murders are clues as to what will come next.
A scene set in the middle of the night as a home invasion takes place next door is shot exceptionally well, like Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1955), with no dialogue.
What the audience sees inside the house from across the yard as violence occurs is frightening.
In the same scene, we know the home invasion will target Gordon’s house, but when will it strike?
Another effective scene shows a seemingly innocent little girl running toward another character in a separate bedroom. Still, she turns into a maniacal fiend, and the thudding footsteps make it terrifying.
I genuinely got scared during a few scenes!
Wisely avoiding the all-too-frequent CGI effects, Annabelle instead takes the traditional route, using genuine scares drawn from the unknown and the anticipation and dread of what’s to come.
The fantastic musical score composed by Joseph Bishara adds to the anticipation.
Annabelle is a prequel to the equally scary The Conjuring (2013). The first scene is the same as that from the earlier film, where two nurses explain how they obtained the doll, Annabelle, and cannot get away from her.
The final act delves into the spiritual world of evil- a soul (presumably Mia’s or her babies’) must be sacrificed to relinquish the curse put upon her by Annabelle’s original owner.
A surprising figure helps bring this film to a close.
Annabelle (2014) is an old-school horror film done very well.
