Let’s go to the Conjuring house!
Want to follow a documentary crew as they research the house that inspired The Conjuring? Be careful what you wish you.
Since the old owners sold the home, the new owners have opened up the property to investigators. The previous owners made the mistake of not making money of the property (and probably sold it due to idiots constantly trespassing). The new owners are also amateur investigators, so I’m sure this is all on the up and up.
Anyone who has read this blog before knows how skeptical I am of these documentaries. Mix in a famous property, owners involved in the investigation, and an after filming added soundtrack… well, let’s just say I have my doubts.
What I had hoped to see here was a history of the land. Who owned the house, when did odd occurrences begin, and more information that would illuminate what was going on. Instead, we just get another episode of Ghost Hunters where people jump at anything and everything with no context or explanations offered.
You’d think with a full feature film we’d see something that resembles interesting evidence, but no, we don’t get nice things. Even the most compelling moments seem staged and easily faked. Maybe I’m the asshole in not believing these videos, but a tapping in the pitch-black woods isn’t enough to prove anything. The burden of proof is one the filmmakers, and they don’t do anything here to rise to that occasion.
We follow an excited group of ghost hunters who are almost squealing with joy at the prospect of visiting such a famous location. They’re investment makes this a watchable albeit dry experience. Nothing that exciting happens. No matter how much the investigators feel we aren’t shown as much and are thus left a bit on the outside.
The location is cool. The house is ancient and has a creepy feeling to it. Yet, we never get a proper tour of the property. With each new scene we’re (usually) in a new area. I didn’t know where we were in relation to the rest of the property most of the time. Instead of feeling any sense of dread or knowing regarding where the odd noises come from the audience is just watching other people be scared. Perhaps that is the biggest flaw of this film: all the scares are barred from audience participation.
If you’re willing to spend $5 to watch a slightly extended Ghost Hunters episode this one does okay. The problems are simply that it just doesn’t feel as engaging or as exciting as it should be. I’d probably watch another film from this crew with hopes they can tighten up their storytelling a bit. If you’re a fan of the paranormal investigations you’ll have seen worse than this, and probably better, this one is mid-pack on quality.
Worth watching if you wait for streaming.
Jay Hates Movies 