The Nun
Heavily relying on jump scare techniques, predictable suspense, and stingers played on cue, the film falls short in its storytelling and directorial style
Director:
Corin Hardy
Producers:
Peter Safran, James Wan
Screenplay:
Gary Dauberman
Story:
James Wan, Gary Dauberman
Lead cast:
Demian Bichir, Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet
Music:
Abel Korzeniowski
Cinematography:
Maxine Alexandre
Editor:
Michel Aller, Ken Blackwell
Distributor:
Warner Bros. Pictures
Location:
Romania
Genre:
Horror
Running Time:
96 minutes
Technical assessment: 2.5 ★★✬✩✩
Moral assessment: 2.5 ★★✬✩✩
CINEMA rating: V16
MTRCB rating: R16
In a cloistered abbey in Romania in 1952, Sister Victoria (Hope) apparently commits suicide by hanging herself after another Sister is attacked by an unseen presence. A few weeks after, Fr. Burke (Bichir), an exorcist, and Sister Irene (Farmiga), a clairvoyant novice, are sent by the Vatican to investigate and determine if the grounds are still holy. The two are accompanied by Frenchie (Bloquet), a delivery boy who first discovered the corpse of Sister Victoria. Needing to stay overnight, the two spent the night in the nearby convent while Frenchie heads back to town. All three experience being terrorized by demonic corpses but manage to escape them. The following day, Sister Irene enters the abbey alone and learns its history — it was built by a Duke obsessed with demonic cult. He unleashes the evil entity before being killed by the Vatican knights who sealed the rift underground with a relic containing the blood of Christ. However, the bombings during war created a crevice allowing the entity to escape. The nuns remained in the cloistered convent afterwards with only their perpetual prayers keeping the demon inside. At the same time, Fr. Burke discovers that the entity is Valak. Frenchie returns to the convent to save Sr. Irene.
The Nun is part of the The Conjuring franchise and is presented as a prequel to the series. Unlike traditional horror movies which depict the religious as avenging souls with murder as their sole objective, this story shows the courage and sacrifice priests and nuns are willing to take so the world will be saved. However, it offers nothing new to its genre. The plot, although promising, is translated into an effortless storytelling that concentrated too much to prove it belongs to the genre. Heavily relying on jump scare techniques, predictable suspense, and stingers played on cue, the film falls short in its storytelling and directorial style. Fr. Burke and Sr. Irene’s characters, although commendable, are completely one dimensional. They remain the same from beginning to end with no motivation or revelation. The production design is overrated, especially with the unoriginal interpretation of the witch-looking demonic nun. Symbolisms lacked subtlety and even logic at times. The Catholic traditions integrated in the film are shallow and show lack of understanding of their meanings. As one critic put it, the movie is an empty thrill ride compared to the rest of the franchise.
While horror is not a favored genre to present faith and religious traditions, the film manages to bring forward positive values. For instance, the power of prayer as the only weapon against evil is highlighted. Instead of relying on street smarts or fate, the narrative insists that prayer — particularly perpetual adoration and the recitation of the Hail Mary (in Latin at that) — has kept the demonic entity at bay for centuries. There is also a subtle nod to Mary’s leading the faithful to Jesus by the twice-spoken line, “Mary points the way” which helped the three in their search for the secret chamber containing the Blood of Christ. Consequently, we see the sacrifice the sisters are willing to go through just to make sure that the world will be safe from harm. Sister Victoria, the nun who committed suicide, even asked for the Lord’s forgiveness as she jumped to her death. You can appreciate the image of a nun who loves the world and is willing to risk her life instead of the cold and exacting authority nuns are usually imagined to be. Since the violence and gore are part of the horror genre, audience can expect them coming every now and then. Younger kids might be scared but older ones will merely laugh it off. — PMF
